If you are planning on setting up a computer network, the class starts with a brief review of the pros and cons of wired vs. wireless networks. We also briefly review the many available technologies used to link computers in a network. 

If you have a network mainly to share a high-speed (broadband) Internet connection, then these topics are relevant:  Sharing files and folders  Configuring TCP/IP Network attached storage Sharing printers

  
Before networks were used to share an Internet connection, their main purpose was to share files. The class covers how to share files and folders on a network of Windows computers, including the various security options. Computers talk to each other on a network using rules/protocols known as TCP/IP. The class covers everything you need to know for setting up and maintaining a TCP/IP network. This includes DNS Servers, Default gateways, DHCP servers and clients, IP addresses and subnet masks and Ethernet. Network attached storage refers to external hard disks that, instead of connecting to a computer, plug into an Ethernet port. This makes the hard disk available to all the computers on the network. To share printers, we discuss using a Windows computer and using a hardware Print Server.

If you are sharing a high speed Internet connection, then a router serves as the heart of the network. The class covers many of the dozens of configuration options for setting up a router, with an emphasis on providing the maximum protection. Learn what to look for when buying a router. 

Anyone connected to the Internet needs to be aware of firewalls. The class covers what firewalls do and why they do it. The topics include:  hardware vs. software firewalls, the concept of ports (a core concept for any firewall), the difference between a good firewall and a poor one, recommendations on choosing a firewall, understanding the alerts from a firewall, testing your firewall and problems that a firewall can not protect you from. Nothing drives home the point of how dangerous the Internet is like watching a firewall protect an exposed computer in real-time. We will watch this live.

One class is devoted to WiFi wireless networks. We cover the different types of WiFi networks and many steps you can take to secure a wireless network including the use of a Virtual Private Networks (VPN).   

How would you like to work late one night but do it at home? Remote control refers to using the computer in front of you to take full control of another computer so that you can, for example, work from home and actually use the computer in your office. We can also do the reverse; if your computer is having a problem, you can let a remote techie take control of your machine to help fix it. 

These subjects will be covered only if time allows. 

• Voice Over IP (VoIP) is getting a lot of publicity for making cheap phone calls over the Internet. The class covers five types of VoIP and some of the amazing bells and whistles that come along with it.  
• Data networks available from the cellphone companies (CDMA, GPRS, 1xRTT, EV-DO, Edge) let you access the Internet wirelessly from almost anywhere. 
• The Hosts file
• Ethernet
• Thin Client Computing

The class covers Windows only, Macs and Linux are not covered. The Active Directory feature of Windows networks is also not covered. 

This is a six week class. There are no pre-requisites. 

Online banking too risky? Some say yes by Reuters November 9, 2005. Learn why in the class. See also my Links That Lie web page. 

DNS 

• How IT Works Domain Name System in Microsoft Technet magazine Winter 2005 
• How Domain Name Servers Work
• Pharming Out-Scams Phishing By Michelle Delio in Wired. March 14, 2005. About DNS poisoning
• Verizon's DNS Servers
• Earthlink DNS Servers

Windows File Sharing 

• Windows, Mac, and Linux PCs on the Same Network by Scott Spanbauer PC World magazine. October 24, 2005. Enable the machines on your cross-platform network to access and share the same files and resources.
• Windows XP Professional File Sharing by Ron Lowe and Steve Winograd December 12, 2001. At practicallynetworked.com. 
• Establish the correct file-sharing permissions in Windows XP by TechRepublic Staff August 20 2002
• How to configure file sharing in Windows XP from Microsoft. Discusses Simple File Sharing only. 
• How to disable simplified sharing and set permissions on a shared folder in Windows XP Professional from Microsoft 

• Sharing and Mapping via the Internet by Johannes Helmig. From 1998 and designed for Windows 95. This shows how to share a directory on your computer over the Internet so that someone else can connect to it. The critical trick is to manually edit the LMHOSTS file. Of course, this article predates the use of firewalls. 

Network Attached Storage 

• NASLite can turn an old computer into a file server. The vendor is ServerElements. See sample output and my review of it.
• Net Drives PC World magazine December 29, 2004. Got multiple PCs and a network? New net-ready hard drives are a smart, affordable way to back up and share data.
• Network Storage for Home and Business PC World magazines top 10 products. February 2005. 
• Buffalo LinkStation Network Storage Center reviewed by PC World magazine. December 29, 2004. 
• Linksys Network Storage Link for USB 2.0 Disk Drives NSLU2

Remote Control 

• Buffalo Readies Remote Access Tool Network World November 8, 2004. Wireless router will rival software apps like GoToMyPC. Alternate link. Press release.  Product web page. Review at practically networked. 
• Access Your Desktop From Wherever You May Be PC World July 2004
• XP Professional's "Remote Control" Option by Fred Langa in Information Week February 24, 2003 
• Remote Desktop Connection Software A free download from Microsoft
• How to use remote Desktop Access in Windows XP by Johannes Helmig at WindowsNetworking.com. Step by step instructions.
• Using Remote Desktop with Windows XP Professional at WindowsNetworking.com Step by step instructions
• How to use remote assistance in Windows XP by Johannes Helmig at WindowsNetworking.com. Step by step instructions.
• Using Remote Assistance to Get Help When You Need It by Microsoft August 24, 2001
• APC rack mounted AC outlet with network interface - Switched Rack PDU. Sold for $700 in June 2005 
• The APC Smart-UPS model SUA1500 can be remotely controlled 
• APC UPS management and UPS Network Management Cards
• www.remotenetworktechnology.com 

VOIP

• VOIP Magazine
• How to Make Phone Calls Without a Telephone The New York Times September 1, 2005
• Smooth Operators - Which Internet phone service is best? By Sam Schechner in Slate. June 29, 2005
• Cheap and Easy Internet Phone Calls PC World. About Skype. May 24, 2005
• PC World VoIP articles
• Dialpad deal works with local phone service Mike Himowitz Baltimore Sun March 24, 2005 
• Making the Jump to VoIP Toms Hardware March 24, 2005 
• Is an Internet Phone Right for You?  PC World December 7, 2004.
• Effortless The Best days of Voice-over-IP Telephone Service May Already Have Passed by Robert X. Cringely March 3, 2005
• Postcards from the edge router March 8, 2005. Web Informant newsletter by David Strom. Bad VoIP experiences in a new house. 
• Hi! The Net Is Calling in Newsweek January 31, 2005 
• Test Your VoIP .com simulates a VoIP call on your broadband connection
• Comparison of VOIP services from Packet8, Lingo, AT&T, Verizon and Vonage 
• Net Phone Zone - VoIP articles from PC World 
• AOL Answers the VoIP Call PC World April 7, 2005 
• 911 is not just another phone number about 911 and VoIP. If you are considering only having a VoIP number, read this. Web Informant newsletter by David Strom. March 21, 2005. 
• AT&T CallVantage VoIP plans
• Pulver.com is devoted to VoIP 
• Skype  and skypejournal
• The Actiontec Internet Phone Wizard lets you use a normal telephone with a free Skype account 
• Phishing by phone--VoIP raises security concerns by Reuters March 20, 2005
• Routing on the go By Brian Livingston August 16, 2002. A real life story of using VoIP from before when it even had a name. Alternate link
• How to Distribute VoIP Throughout a Home 
• VoIP How to by Roberto Arcomano

Virtual Private Network (VPN)

• Secure Surfing to Go: VPN Made Easy  ExtremeTech March 2, 2006
• Getting VPN to work through NAT firewalls By Tim Higgins May 2003
• The Virtual Private Network Consortium
• Virtual Private Networks from Microsoft with much about VPN software in server versions of Windows 

Cell Phone Networks 

• EV-DO, Edge, HSDPA, or what? by Ed Bott January 31, 2006
• Surfin' U.S.A. by Walter Mossberg October 2005. About Verizon's EV-DO network. 
• Sprint Debuts EV-DO August 18, 2005 PC Magazine.  
• For Surfers, a Roving Hot Spot That Shares New York Times. July 14, 2005. About the Junxion Box 
• Junxion Box JB-110b reviewed by CNET. June 25, 2005. Share a high speed wireless Internet connection with your friends. 
• Cellular Fills Gap Between Hotspots May 2005 JiWire 
• evdoinfo.com All about EV-DO and using the data networks built on it 
• Wireless Without Borders: Networks for Those on the Go March 2, 2005. PC Magazine
• Taking WiFi to the Max October 4, 2004 Mercury News
• Definition of the 802.16 protocol
• WiMAX Forum

Research an IP address 

• What Is WhoIs? by Karen Kenworthy. March 15, 2005. An excellent explanation of where to find information on both IP addresses and domain names. She has written a free program called Karen's Whois that does this. 
• How do I figure out who owns an IP address? by Leo Notenboom October 16, 2004 
• dnsstuff.com has all sorts of TCP/IP inquiries including who owns an IP address 
• Find IP Address Information from webyield.net
• IP address classes (image)
• IP address subnetting (image)
• Calculating Subnet Masks By Joshua Erdman at NetworkClue.com 
• Subnet Mask Calculator at cotse.net
• There are a bunch of IP address related calculators at subnetmask.info
• A mistake ridden example of IP addresses from PC Magazine. Feb 22, 2005. text  image 

Ports 

• IANA maintains the official list of TCP/IP Port numbers  
• PC Flank's Port Database
• Steve Gibson's Port Authority is grc.com/port_21.htm
• TCP and UDP Port Assignments from Microsoft for Windows 2000
• TCP/IP Ports for Internet Services
• What is a port? at emsisoft.com
• A very long web page with a full list of ports from emsisoft.com (not much info on each port)  

Hosts File 

• Sample good hosts file. Sample bad hosts file. 
• What is the Hosts file? by Gorilla Design Studio 
• Host file From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 
• Blocking Unwanted Parasites with a Hosts File by me. Using the Hosts file for good rather than evil. 
• What is Domain Name Resolution from BleepingComputer.com. How to edit the Registry so Windows uses DNS before the Hosts file
• To see your Hosts file in Notepad, make a shortcut such as this: 
  %SystemRoot%\system32\notepad.exe C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC\hosts

Wireless Computer Networks (WiFi)

wifinetnews.com As the name says, news about WiFi By Glenn Fleishman

Review: Belkin's Faster, Cheaper MIMO Router at Mobile Pipeline September 13, 2005. Belkin and Linksys have released second generation Pre-N routers. 

Compare and Contrast Linksys Generation 1 Pre-N with Generation 2 Pre-N. September 2005. 

The Linksys WRT54GX seems to be the best WiFi router. Be sure to update the firmware. Tom's Networking review (last updated Aug. 2005)

Playing All the Angles in a Wireless Home Network Kate Murphy, New York Times. September 11, 2005. An introductory article about WiFi networks. 

Find WiFi certified products at www.weca.net 

JiWire's Wi-Fi Security Test is an ActiveX program that tells you about your WiFi connection 

Stealing your neighbor's Net CNN/Money August 10, 2005. The spread of wireless is opening lots of opportunity to log on for free, but experts urge caution.

New wireless kit by James E. Gaskin in Network World June 13, 2005. A review of the US Robotics wireless network startup kit. 

Wi-Finally: wireless security that actually works By Brian Livingston in windowssecrets.com May 27, 2005  

You're Ice Cold at a Hot Spot: 7 Reasons Why By David Pogue in the New York Times. Things that can go wrong with WiFi. May 4, 2005

Growth of Wireless Internet Opens New Path for Thieves New York Times March 19, 2005

Deploying Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 in the Enterprise by the Wi-Fi Alliance March 2005. PDF. 

The six dumbest ways to secure a wireless LAN March 18, 2005 by George Ou of ZDnet 

Worried about Wi-Fi security? January 19, 2005, CNET News.com

Tom's Networking Wireless articles      Alternate Link

Extend your reach with a long-range router reviews of four pre-N models by CNET. Varying dates. 

How To Steal Wi-Fi And how to keep the neighbors from stealing yours by Paul Boutin in Slate magazine. November 18, 2004. 

Linksys Goes Long with MIMO-based Wireless at ExtremeTech February 2, 2005. A review of a pre-N WiFi router. 

Linksys WRT54GX Router with SRX PC Magazine February 28, 2005  

Belkin's wireless router raises the bar for speed and range The Detroit News November 24, 2004. A review of a pre-N WiFi router. 

Belkin Wireless Pre-N Router By Trusted Reviews March 7, 2005

Belkin Wireless Pre-N Router PC Magazine October 7, 2004  

Belkin Pre-N Wireless Networking the Belkin Web Site 

Always On Wireless WiFlyer PC Magazine. February 28, 2005

www.54g.org

Wireless System Architecture: How Wireless Works By Jim Geier Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Cisco Press. October 15, 2004. Apart from transmitting the information over the air, wireless networks are very much like wired networks. However, that seemingly small difference can lead to some very large problems if you don't understand the nuances of this medium. Read this chapter to find out how wireless networks work, and why they need to be administered differently from traditional, wired networks.

Wireless Security By Tom M. Thomas. Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Cisco Press. July 16, 2004. The basics of setting up security for a wireless network. The various ways in which a wireless network can be breached, and provides help in protecting against those attacks. Lisa Phifer's Wireless CORner has many WiFi links. 

Terabeam aims to solve 'last mile' data jam CNN February 2001. Using laser beams for broadband Internet access

Terabeam  

Wireless Network (WiFi) Security

• Wi-Fi Networks Get a Security Upgrade Vendors to release WEP replacement in May 2003. PCWorld.com. April 30, 2003
• Flight Risk How to Protect Your Privacy While WiFi'ing The Village Voice by Brendan Koerner July 14th, 2003
• Wi-Fi Security Gets a Boost About upcoming 802.11i standard. IDG News Service February 24, 2003
• Wi-Fi Boosts Security About WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access).  PC World October 31, 2002
• Wireless Security for the Home User May 12, 2003 Ezlan.net
• New wireless security: Why you should use it ZDNet April 9, 2003 
• Wi-Fi: Security For The Masses Information Week June 30, 2003

RFCs (Requests For Comments) Protocol Rules 

• All IETF RFCs
• Official Internet Protocol Standards from rfc-editor.org. Another full list. 
• Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4) RFC 791 
• HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol RFC 2616 
• Post Office Protocol - Version 3 RFC 1939
• Simple Mail Transfer Protocol  RFC 821 
• SMTP: Simple Mail Transfer Protocol from a college professor
• UDP User Datagram Protocol RFC 768 

Thin Clients / Server Based Computing 

• Wyse
• Neoware
• Citrix offers high end server based computing for Windows servers.  
• Thinworx also offers server based computing and is much cheaper than Citrix
• Provision Networks also offers server based computing 
• Requiem for the Corporate PC Business Week magazine January 19, 2005 By Nicholas G. Carr 
• The Office PC Slims Down Wall Street Journal  January 17, 2005 by William Bulkeley. More companies are giving workers 'thin' computers—saving money and making it easier to track and restrict how employees use their machines

• Remote-Display Servers Thin-Client Computing Gets Smart Network Computing Magazine. February 3, 2005. Server-based computing has evolved into an intelligent way to save time, money and aggravation. 

Protocol Numbers

• IANA maintains the official list of protocol numbers. 
• Microsoft lists all protocol numbers and just the most common ones.

Assorted Networking Articles

SMC 85 Mbps Turbo Powerline to Ethernet Desktop Adapter  PracticallyNetworked.com. February 27, 2006. A review of a HomePlug network adapter. 

Power lines to deliver Web service to Ill. city November 26, 2005 Associated Press 

Power Companies Enter the High-Speed Internet Market New York Times October 17, 2005. Can Con Ed compete with DSL and cable for high speed Internet access? 

Verizon's Fios Service Moves U.S. Internet Beyond a Snail's Pace by Walter Mossberg September 15, 2005

Karen Kenworthy has a newsletter. The December 8, 2004 issue covers The Internet Protocol, IP Addresses and IP Datagrams

Karen's December 16, 2004 issue covers Protocol Stacks, UDP, TCP and ICMP.  

Windows Networking 101 by Steve Gibson 

Who runs the Internet. An overview of 11 organizations. A Concise Guide to the Major Internet Bodies

Understanding IP Addressing: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know from 3Com. A 75 page PDF file that gets very technical. 

Internet Addressing and Routing First Step Nov 5, 2004 By William Parkhurst. Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Cisco Press. This chapter explains how internet routing works, and how internet addresses are assigned and utilized by network structures. 

How To Use IP And BGP To Troubleshoot Internet Connectivity by David Davis February 2005. 

Why You Want Your Own Network By Brian Underdahl. Sample Chapter is provided courtesy of Cisco Press. October 29, 2004. For the novice, networking can seem like an intimidating concept, but this chapter will help you to manage your fear of networks and discover the joys of a home network.

The Battle for Your Automated Home: Insteon, ZigBee, and Z-Wave PC Magazine March 7, 2005

Other Networking classes 

• The lecture notes from an MIT class on Data Communication Networks  
• The Lecture slides from an Intro to Networking class at the University of Washington  

CIFS: A Common Internet File System by Paul Leach and Dan Perry of Microsoft. Though based on the low-level file system implemented by Windows, CIFS is a platform-independent file sharing system.

Networking Related Web Sites

IEEE OUI and Company_id Assignments Answering the burning question: who made that Ethernet network adapter? 

ARIN WHOIS Database Search

www.practicallynetworked.com well regarded 

www.Protocols.com offers a comprehensive listing of data communications protocols, their functions in respect to the OSI model, the structure of the protocol and various errors and parameters.

Charles Spurgeon's Ethernet Web Site provides information about Ethernet (IEEE 802.3) local area network (LAN) technology. This includes the original 10 Megabit per second (Mbps) system, 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet (802.3u), 1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet (802.3z/802.3ab), and 10 Gigabit Ethernet (802.3ae).

The Internet Engineering Task Force has the original specs for IP, TCP and many more (index) in plain text format. There is also an tutorial on TCP/IP.

Extreme Tech networking articles

Windows 2000/XP file and printer sharing problems at Tom's Networking 

Exchange Point Information

Home Net Help.com 

How fast is your Internet connection 

• www.wugnet.com/speedtest.html
• webservices.cnet.com/bandwidth
• www.pcpitstop.com/internet/bandwidth.asp
• performance.toast.net 
• Broadband Reports
• www.bandwidthplace.com/speedtest
• us.mcafee.com/root/speedometer.asp 
• Numion.com 
• speedtest.dslreports.com

Networking Software

LAN Monitor a program from Karen Kenworthy, free for personal and home use, that lets you see your computer's connections and conversations across the Internet. 

TCPView from Sysinternals.com lets you see all open TCP and UDP endpoints. On Windows NT, 2000 and XP TCPView even displays the name of the process that owns each endpoint. Includes a command-line version, tcpvcon. Free! 

TDIMON from Sysinternals.com. Free! See TCP and UDP activity in real-time with this advanced network API monitoring tool. 

NetStat Live from AnalogX. Free. See network activity in real time. Screen shot

HyperTrace from AnalogX is a free Trace Route utility. Article.

Traceroute.org trace the IP path from many locations on the Internet back to an IP address or Web site. 

VisualRoute from Visualware is a Trace Route utility that graphically displays the IP path through the Internet. Live Demo.

PromqryUI 1.0 from Microsoft detects network interfaces that are running in promiscuous mode.
 

Books

Networking for Dummies, Seventh Edition by Doug Lowe $16 at Amazon, October  2004. Covers Windows XP SP2

TCP/IP Tutorial and Technical Overview A redbook from IBM is available for free as a PDF

TCP/IP Fundamentals for Microsoft Windows from Microsoft. November 2, 2004. The first 4 chapters of a book are available online for free. An introduction to the basic concepts and principles of TCP/IP, how the most important protocols function, and their basic configuration in the Microsoft® Windows Server™ 2003 and Windows® XP operating systems. A discussion of concepts and principles to lay a conceptual foundation for the TCP/IP protocol suite.  

Network+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Second Edition January 2002 $37.79 at Amazon 

Internet Routing Architectures (2nd Edition) by Sam Halabi, Danny McPherson. About Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) that routes traffic from its origin on one network to its destination on another. 

Mike Meyers' Network+ Certification Passport January 2002 $19.79 at Amazon. I was not impressed. 
 

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Connect Apple Macintosh and iMac computers that use LocalTalk to an Ethernet network. CDW web page.

Token Ring network adapters on sale at CDW  Madge RapidFire 3140V2 Token Ring Adapter (slow) and Madge Smart 100/16/4 PCI Ringnode (fast). Also Black Box Ethernet to Token Ring Adapter. Madge makes Token Ring Adapters

Above:  Software | Networking Articles | Web Sites | Books | Wireless