Simple home network stops working ?

[Guest]

Hi Chuck

SUCCESS SUCCESS SUCCESS

The problem was Norton Anti Virus 2003 on the laptop !

I have Norton AntiVirus on both machines but it's part of Norton SystemWorks
2003 on the Desktop, whereas its the stand alone version on the Laptop.
I was reluctant to uninstall because of the age of the products and the
number of updates that I've received. But when needs must !!!!- I'd tried
just about everything else.

I just uninstalled the NAV from the Laptop and this seemed to clear the
problem. I've now re-installed it, and the network appears to be running OK.

Chuck you're a star. Many thanks for all your help and suggestions - I could
not have solved this myself.

I'm considering Broadband and a wireless network for my 2 computers but the
problems which might occur are putting me off taking this step. !!!!!

Once again many thanks
regards
Roger

 

[Chuck]

Hi Chuck

SUCCESS SUCCESS SUCCESS

The problem was Norton Anti Virus 2003 on the laptop !

I have Norton AntiVirus on both machines but it's part of Norton SystemWorks
2003 on the Desktop, whereas its the stand alone version on the Laptop.
I was reluctant to uninstall because of the age of the products and the
number of updates that I've received. But when needs must !!!!- I'd tried
just about everything else.

I just uninstalled the NAV from the Laptop and this seemed to clear the
problem. I've now re-installed it, and the network appears to be running OK.

Chuck you're a star. Many thanks for all your help and suggestions - I could
not have solved this myself.

I'm considering Broadband and a wireless network for my 2 computers but the
problems which might occur are putting me off taking this step. !!!!!

Once again many thanks
regards
Roger

Roger,

Well that's good news indeed! Thanks for the feedback. And please don't let
this experience put you off updating - broadband and wireless are excellent
things to have.

But, if you get broadband, PLEASE get a NAT router for convenience and
protection. Stay away from USB modems, which require you to connect one
computer as a host as you have right now.

And if you use a wireless LAN, remember to protect yourself especially.
Remember with a wireless LAN, your neighbors may be far outside your front door.

Here's a story about somebody's very stupid wireless neighbor. Don't expect all
wireless neighbors to be this stupid.
<http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/LondonFreePress/News/2003/11/22/264890.html>.

The point is, you need to protect a wireless LAN with more precautions than just
the NAT firewall.

Change the router management password, and disable remote (WAN) management.

Enable WEP / WPA. Use non-trivial (non-guessable) values for each. (No "My dog
has fleas").

Enable MAC filtering.

Change the subnet of your LAN - don't use the default.

Disable DHCP, and assign an address to each computer manually.

Install a software firewall on every computer connected to a wireless LAN. Put
manually assigned ip addresses in the Local (highly trusted) Zone. Open the
following ports for file sharing, only in the Local Zone: TCP 139, 445; UDP 137,
138, 445.

Don't disable SSID broadcast - some configurations require the SSID broadcast.
But change the SSID itself - to something that doesn't identify you, or the
equipment.

Enable the router activity log. Examine it regularly. Know what each
connection listed represents - you? a neighbor?.

Use non-trivial accounts and passwords on every computer connected to a wireless
LAN. Disable or delete Guest userid, if possible (XP Home is a bad choice
here). Rename Administrator, to a non-trivial value, and give it a non-trivial
password. Never use the Administrator renamed account for day to day
activities, only when intentionally doing administrative tasks.

Stay educated - know what the threats are. Newsgroups alt.internet.wireless and
microsoft.public.windows.networking,wireless are good places to start.