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what all do I need to start my own personal network at home. I need to connect two to three computers. Once connected, what sort of provider do I need that is fast but cheap. Reasonably. What type of media do i need. I was thinking cat of course but i need everyones input. Holla
hmm.. i would really love to crack up right now but i wont..
ok to create a home network you need 2 things..
1) NIC Card
2) CAT5 RJ45 cable..
you can buy them in your local computer shops..
now, install the NIC card in your box.. that means you have to open your computer and shuv the NIC Card on a slot located on the mother board.. and then install the driver.
Then, you connect them with the CAT5 RJ45 Cable..
then configure your desired protocol.. to do that, go to your desktop and right click on Network Neighbourhood.. and go to Properties. from there you can configure your network. I would suggest for you to use TCP/IP as a protocol.
from there.. your network would be ready, all you need now is to restart your computers and boom.. home network. to know if it worked, check your Network Neighbourhood.. if you see computers in it then ur in a network.
now you have to set file sharing.. you have to pick which folders of which computers you want to share in the network.
you can turn on the "file sharing" in the Properties of Network Neighbourhood..
this is a very basic way to set up a home network.. and this would work on ANY platform.
but if you want to do a more advanced home networking, please tell us what O/S your computers are using..
Or, you can go to www.google.com and search for "how to create a home network"
If you wiring computers with a hub, a normal cat5 cable will do but if you just wire two computers together with no hub you need a crossover cable.
Let’s total this up here
$20 network card
$20 another network card
$20 a third one if you need it
$12-30 for cable depending on how much you need
So this should cost you between $52-$90.
Two other options for home networking are a wireless network (costly)
And the kind that works through your phone line.
The setup i have is:
3 computers using 10/100 NIC Cards
CAT5 Ethernet Cable
Linksys Firewall/Router
and for internet access, cable modem.
If money is not an issue. You could look at Fiber Optic for your cabling needs. There are a few other options, but I don't know of them off-hand.
Fiber is good, but expensive. CAT5 with 10/100 NICs and a Switch would give you a reasonably fast network. (Not a hub, Get a switch - this has been debated elsewhere on AO and there's no reason to get a hub, switches can be just as cheap, and offer better data throughput (cos they switch, rather than broadcast to the whole LAN)Quote:
You could look at Fiber Optic for your cabling needs
You can purchase a Network starter kit for a less than $100.00. It includes 1 5 port hub, 4 lan card, UTP cable with RJ-45 already crimped.
Yeah, but whatever you do do not purchache un-crimped CAT5 its a bitch to crip and the connectors cost 10$ each.... If you need anyhelp with the settings or installation of the NIC's or the software/config just PM me and ill try my best to help out.... I have a little experience with home networks (Seeing as I have one at home :p)
i remember the first time i crimped an RJ45 cable.. i started off with 1 metre and ended up with 10 inches of cable.. dont u just hate it when you already crimped it and still not all lights blink in the tester.. lol
s0nIc, be glad you had a tester...
be sure to have the right kind of cat5 too-if there are many lights and things that use a lot of power around the area of where the cat5 will be, be sure to get shielded cat5-otherwise you'll get many errors
I forgot to mention this, and so did everyone else who posted....
if you use a hub/switch/router, then the cable you need is called patch.....Quote:
Originally posted here by cwk9
If you wiring computers with a hub, a normal cat5 cable will do but if you just wire two computers together with no hub you need a crossover cable.
sonic, i wasn't trying to make a joke but it is cool. That sort of answered my question. I know about hubs and switches, I just wanted to get everyones opinion. Which is cheaper, Hub or switch. Last I heard they are about the same now. For everyone who was talking about how it was hard to prepare cables, just holla and I will be there for the right price b/c that ain't a thing. No one mentioned roll over or straight though cables (what ever you call it). Isn't that needed to talk to the router and program it. Is that cable in the home networking kit, acid_spectrum? Holla
Here are the links to my first two networking tuts in the series I'm writing. Some of it may help.
Part 1:
http://www.antionline.com/showthread...hreadid=220125
Part 2:
http://www.antionline.com/showthread...hreadid=222545
Here is the setup I have at home. SA Cable modem. LinkSys Router with 8 port switch. With LinkSys LNE TX100 nic cards. It works flawless with my Linux and Win boxes. Even works fine with my dual boot box. Thats the atvantage of having a router/switch with DHCP. Plug it in and go with it. Very minimal instalation woes.