Hot to setup a network

Wired and wireless home networks have their limitations. Wireless networks can be inhibited by intervening walls, pillars, or furniture, leading to spotty signals and reduced bandwidth. They also have a maximum range even in open space, especially at higher bandwidths and on higher frequency channels, like 5GHz. You can also run out of Ethernet ports on your router, making it harder to connect all the devices you want to the network.

To improve the range of your wireless home network, you can use wireless repeaters to amplify and re-transmit your Wi-Fi signal, effectively extending its range. Some of these devices include dual wireless routers, passing the signal between them before sending it on, whereas some use a powerline connection which is then converted into a wireless signal at the other end. Another option for large Wi-Fi networks are mesh routers, which use multiple access points and smart routing of the signal to provide the best performance depending on where you are in your home and the particular needs of your device.

They can be more expensive to setup in the first place, but offer larger homes great coverage throughout the entire property. Network cables come in a few different shapes and sizes, most notably designated by their Category, or Cat numbering. The most current and popular Ethernet cables are Cat 5e and Cat 6 , which represent some of the best options for home network users. They offer up to 1 Gigabit, and 10 Gigabit connections, respectively, with Cat 6 cables providing slightly better shielding.

One of the great things about Ethernet cables, is that you can actually make them yourself fairly easily. Check out some of Cable Matters' options for cables. The first step is setting up the modem you likely received from your ISP. Plug it in to the phone line and power it on. At this point, power on your own router and connect it to the modem using an Ethernet cable.

There should be a specific LAN port for the job, but if not, plug it into the first Ethernet port, labelled 0 or 1. Consider changing the Wi-Fi password to something less generic, too. This can further improve security and make sure the router is working to its fullest performance and potential.

Sorry this didn't help. Thanks for your feedback. I have the same question Report abuse. Details required :. Cancel Submit. Power on all other connected devices. Configure the computers for networking. To do this you will need to go to the internet options on each computer. This is different depending on if you are using Windows Mac , or Linux.

Type in your IP address for that computer, and the appropriate subnet mask If configuring a home network with a relatively new router, This section can be ignored as long as the network is connected correctly, The router will assign network addresses to everything on the network going into your network, until it hits another router. If your network is divided using one or more internal routers, each router will require an address for each network connected to it.

This address will need to be a host address just like a computer's from the host range of the network. Typically, the first available host address that's the second address in the address range ex. However any address in the host range is fine as long as you know what it is. Do not use the network address ex. For networks containing one or more user devices ex.

The DNS server, if present, should remain the address used by the router between your networks and the internet. For networks interconnecting routers, no default gateway is needed.

For networks containing both user devices and routers, any router on that network will do. A network is a network, no matter how big or small. When two routers are connected by one cable, all will belong to the cable.

The network address will be. Two of the hosts will be used one for each interface the cable connects , and the other will simply go to waste because they cannot be used anywhere else. Generally, the small home routers are not used for this purpose. When they are, understand the ethernet interfaces on the "private network" side usually belong to a "switch" which is built into the router.

The router itself connects to this internally using only one interface. When this is the case, only one host IP will be used by all of them, and they will all be on the same network.

When a router has multiple interfaces with multiple IP's, each interface and IP will create a different network. Verify connectivity. The simplest way to do this is with Ping. Do this on one host and ping to all other hosts. Remember, your router is considered a host. If you cannot reach one, read over the steps again or contact a professional.

First, see what type of password has been created. Not Helpful 3 Helpful 9. Set it up like you would at home. Grab a router, configure it, and connect any additional devices. Then it's just a matter of connecting your new network to the internet.

Not Helpful 7 Helpful Is it possible to get an ISP from a different country than the one I am living in? Jacob Du. No it's not. The ISP needs to own fiber in your area in order to provide service. Smaller ISPs usually rent bandwidth from larger providers, but the internet isn't a virtual thing, it's physical.

The ISP needs to lay those cables first. Not Helpful 2 Helpful 3. Yes, just adjust your privacy in Settings. Not Helpful 2 Helpful 2. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Avoid using the IP range This range is reserved for loop back functionality, that is, looping back to your localhost the computer you are on currently.

Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0. Although devices which do not affect public systems, "in theory", do not have to conform to this policy, in practice DNS service, and other software may become confused by use of addresses outside these ranges if not specially configured.

Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0. Networking experts never deviate from this policy if private IP data may affect devices outside their own networks, and rarely do so on isolated intra-nets without specific reason. Service providers have the responsibility to protect the Internet from IP conflicts by denying service, should a private IP address outside these ranges affect a public system.

Problems may also arise should a software, hardware, or human error issue cause private IP's outside this range to be used on the public internet. This could be caused by anything from failure of a router to initialize properly to accidentally connecting one of your devices directly to the internet at a later time.

And with the right encryption and password management in place, the wireless portion of the network can be as secure as the wired. After you set up your network, you might want to add more sharing options for your work and devices.

Some of these options are set automatically, while others can be set manually. In Windows 8. If certain sharing options don't turn on automatically, you can activate them manually. These manual activation options include:. Network discovery is a network setting that lets your device find other devices on the network and other devices find your device. Such functionality makes it easier to share files and printers. Network sharing automatically adjusts security and other settings based on the type of network connected to your device.

To check whether network sharing is enabled, follow the instructions. The first time you connect to a network, you'll be asked if you want to turn on sharing between devices and connect to network devices such as printers. Your answer automatically sets the appropriate firewall and security settings for the type of network. You can turn sharing on or off at any time.

To share a file or folder, follow the instructions for the version of Windows installed on your device. With password-protected sharing, people on your network can't access shared folders on other devices, including Public folders, unless they have a user name and password on the device for shared folders.

The network map is a graphical view of the devices and devices on your network. The map shows how devices are connected and includes any problem areas. It can be helpful for troubleshooting.

For Windows 7, certain sharing options turn on automatically. For example, when you change your network location to Home or Work, network discovery is automatically turned on. Similarly, file sharing turns on automatically the first time you try to share a file or folder. There are three network discovery states:. Windows 7 automatically adjusts security and other settings based on the type of network connected to your device.

If you skip this step, then the first time that you connect to the network, you'll be asked to select your network location.

You can change this setting later. The network offers some protection from the Internet such as a router and firewall and contains known or trusted devices. Network discovery is turned on automatically. Most small business networks fall into this category. The network is available for public use. Examples of public networks are public Internet access networks, such as those found in airports, libraries, and coffee shops.

This network location helps keep your device from being seen by other devices around you and helps protect your device from malicious software on the Internet. You should also select this option if you're connected directly to the Internet without using a router or if you have a mobile broadband connection.

The device is connected to a network that contains an Active Directory domain controller. A corporate network is one example of a domain network. This network location isn't available as an option. It must be set by the domain administrator.

For your small business network, make sure that the network location type is set to Home or Work. Here's how to check:. For Windows Vista, certain sharing options turn on automatically.

For home or small office networks when you know and trust the people and devices on the network. Network discovery is on by default. For networks in public places such as coffee shops or airports.

This location keeps your device from being visible to other devices around you and helps protect your device from any malicious software on the Internet. Network discovery is turned off for this location. If your network consists of devices that are running similar hardware and software, you can select the option to download additional printer drivers on the host system.

We do not recommend this option if you have a mixed network that includes more than one combination of bit and bit operating systems. If your network contains devices running different versions of Windows, put all devices in the same workgroup. This makes it possible for devices that are running different versions of Windows to detect and access one another.

Remember that the default workgroup name is not the same in all versions of Windows. If Windows XP devices still don't appear on the network map even after you install the LLTD protocol, check your Windows firewall settings and make sure that file and printer sharing is enabled. If you're using another firewall, see the information that was included with your firewall.