how do i configure??

[basschakra]

this question has probably been answered many times and if so add me to the
list.;o)

i have a laptop with a wireless data card for internet access. i have
multiple desktops that i would like to connect thru a router via ethernet
connections and have them be able to access the internet via the laptop's
wireless data card.

is this possible and if so, how do i configure things??? thanks much...mc

 

[Robert L. \(MS-MVP\)]

It is better to have a router connecting to the Internet and all computers
connect to the internet through the router. If you must connect the internet
via the laptop, you may want to setup ICS. This how to may help.
How to setup Windows ICS
Windows 2000 supports both Network Address Translation (NAT) and
Internet Confection Shading (ICS) al1ow workgroup users to access to the
Internet. ...
www.howtonetworking.com/Windows/ics.htm


--
Bob Lin, MS-MVP, MCSE & CNE
Networking, Internet, Routing, VPN Troubleshooting on
http://www.ChicagoTech.net
How to Setup Windows, Network, VPN & Remote Access on
http://www.HowToNetworking.com

 

[basschakra]

thanks for the reply robert. the situation that this remedy rquires that i
set it up this way. tho i do agree the other way is more standard and ideal.

so in this setup using the ICS config, am i assuming correctly that my
laptop ethernet connection must go into the internet connection of the router
so that the other desktops can access? thanks again!!!

 

[Lem]

There are wireless routers that accept a wireless data card for Internet
access.

If you want to use ICS on your laptop (which means that the laptop must
be on in order for any of the other computers to access the Internet),
things *may* work (if you *only* want to access the Internet) if you
configure the router's WAN interface to obtain an IP address
automatically and connect the laptop to the router's Internet input, but
ideally:
(a) the Internet connection of your router should be left UNconnected;
(b) the DHCP server function of the router should be disabled; and
(c) the NIC on the laptop should be connected to one the LAN ports on
the router.

thanks for the reply robert. the situation that this remedy rquires that i
set it up this way. tho i do agree the other way is more standard and ideal.

so in this setup using the ICS config, am i assuming correctly that my
laptop ethernet connection must go into the internet connection of the router
so that the other desktops can access? thanks again!!!

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm

 

[basschakra]

thanks lem. your post and robert's have cleared my confusion on this. i
appreciate you guys takin' the time to post. thanks...mc

 

[basschakra]

Lem...one other question. in your 'ideally' statement, are the other pc's
'limited' to what IP address (site) that the laptop is viewing or are the
other pc's 'independant' and free to view any site they choose regardless of
what the laptop might be doing? so, in ICS configs are the clients tied to
the hosts movements? thanks again...mc

 

[Lem]

Each computer connected to the ICS host is independent, i.e., can
connect to whatever site it wants. The ICS host need not be "viewing"
any Internet site at all -- but it has to be turned on and not in
standby/hibernate mode. In effect, ICS makes the host computer behave
like a router for the other computers.

Normally, the home routers that most of us see actually combine several
devices in a single box. One of these typically is a switch, which is
why most home routers have 4 LAN ports rather than just 1. The ICS host
computer doesn't have a switch, so if you want to connect more than one
computer to it, you have to add a switch. Rather than buying a separate
switch (which you could do), you can use the switch portion of your
router, which is what happens if you connect the ICS host computer to
one of the LAN ports on the router.

Lem...one other question. in your 'ideally' statement, are the other pc's
'limited' to what IP address (site) that the laptop is viewing or are the
other pc's 'independant' and free to view any site they choose regardless of
what the laptop might be doing? so, in ICS configs are the clients tied to
the hosts movements? thanks again...mc

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm

 

[basschakra]

in my situation i am dealing with a non-wired classroom with limited
resources. so my bottom line desire is to have the kids on the client side of
the ICS be 'only' be able to access the 'one' necessary site. so it seems
like your first recommendation is the one i should follow since i could
configure the router and use its' firewall to limit/secure access to the
particular site. am i correct in this assumption??? many thanks again...mc

 

[Lem]

Neither configuration will inherently do what you want. However, it's
possible that if you connect the Internet input of a router to the ICS
NIC on the laptop (which in turn is connected to the Internet), may be
able to configure the router to restrict access. Each router is
different, so look in your router's User Guide for "access control" or
the like. Even this, however, is only designed to block a few "bad"
websites, rather than block everything but one "good" website.

In the end, because ICS only works while the laptop is working, if
you're present while your laptop is present, you may just have to
monitor the kids' surfing habits manually.

in my situation i am dealing with a non-wired classroom with limited
resources. so my bottom line desire is to have the kids on the client side of
the ICS be 'only' be able to access the 'one' necessary site. so it seems
like your first recommendation is the one i should follow since i could
configure the router and use its' firewall to limit/secure access to the
particular site. am i correct in this assumption??? many thanks again...mc

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm

 

[basschakra]

thanks once again Lem. i'm down to researching firewall software that will
allow wildcard characters (*) in their access definitions. that way i could
block (www.*.com) and then enter (www.desiredsite.com) in the allowed
permissions. so right now my plan is to use the ICS as suggested with a
software firewall. can you recommend any firewall software with the wildcard
permissions feature? continued thanks...mc

 

[Lem]

thanks once again Lem. i'm down to researching firewall software that will
allow wildcard characters (*) in their access definitions. that way i could
block (www.*.com) and then enter (www.desiredsite.com) in the allowed
permissions. so right now my plan is to use the ICS as suggested with a
software firewall. can you recommend any firewall software with the wildcard
permissions feature? continued thanks...mc

Sorry, I've not had a need for that feature and so haven't paid any
attention to such specs. Good luck.

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm

 

[basschakra]

Lem, thanks again for the reply. i did find firewall software that looks
promising. so for those with similiar needs that might run up on this post
here is the link...

http://en.lanctrl.com/

all the best...mc