Need your Mac and non-Apple wireless router to peacefully coexist? Out of the box, my iBook didn't work with my Motorola broadband router. This recipe describes the steps taken to make the two play together.I had an existing Motorola wireless broadband router configured with 128-bit WEP using a preshared key. The iBook saw the ssid and accepted the key and let me know that it made a connection to the router, and the router saw the MAC address of the iBook, but I could not ping the router or get anywhere outside of my laptop tpc/ip stack. After trying many settings, I discovered that changing the router to use WPA-PSK (Wi-Fi Protected Access - Pre-shared Key) and TKIP encryption status allowed my iBook to work and happily send packets to and fro. On my router, this involved logging into the router admin web page, clicking wireless on the left panel, then clicking the security tab. Under ESS Authentication, select WPA-PSK and for Encryption Status pick TKIP. Type a pass key (alphanumeric... Read More

 Mac OS X has built-in capablities through Samba to play nicely with Windows networks. An early step to working seamlessly with a Windows workgroup is joining that network.Open the Directory Access utility (under Applications -> Utilities). If the window is locked (padlock closed on the lower left), click on the padlock to unlock it. Select SMB and click Configure... Type in the name of the desired Windows workgroup in the Workgroup field, enter a WINS server (if appropriate) and click OK, then Apply.... Read More

 Can't we all just get along? Macs and Windows can since Mac OS X includes Samba. Once you have configured the Windows workgroup on your Mac, you can connect to a Windows share by following these steps: Click somewhere on your desktop to bring up the Finder menu at the top of the screen. Click the Go menu at the top of the screen and select Connect to Server... In the Server address field, to connect to the Windows server at 192.168.1.15, use: smb://192.168.1.15/sharename The sharename is optional. If omitted, the system will prompt you with a pulldown menu of possible shares. If asked to authenticate, use the username and password of the Windows system to which you are connecting.... Read More

 Prevent unauthorized website certificates from being able to install software onto your computers.Most (myself not included) of us prefer to modify our computers and network with built in GUIs and Windows based fixes, instead of playing with the registry, so here's a few tips using such a way. Open Group Policy: -go to start\run and type 'gpedit.msc' -navigate to the path: local computer policy\computer configuration\administrative components\windows components\internet explorer\internet control panel\advanced page -now double click the icon to the right called Allow software to run or install even if the signature is invalid -select disable from the radio buttons This will disable the ability to run OR install software from a website with an unwanted/unauthorized certificate. Preventing some of the headaches associated with multi-user networks and malicious scripts etc. *NOTE this method only applies to the current computer, so this process either needs to be repeated on subsequent co... Read More

 Setting the IP address from the command line from XP is simple with the netsh command. This is ideal for use in batch files.To set the following settings on the network interface "Local Area Network" IP address: 192.168.50.100 Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0 Gateway: 192.168.50.1 use the following command (one line): netsh int ip set address name="Local Area Connection" source=static 192.168.50.100 255.255.255.0 192.168.50.1 1 The order of the values in the command is IP address, subnet mask, and gateway. The 1 at the end is a routing metric for the gateway address. The value 1 will work for most circumstances.... Read More

 Having trouble getting specific programs or services on your Windows XP machine to reach the internet after you enable Internet Connection Firewall? Here's how to punch a hole through the XP firewall!1 Click Start 2. Click Settings 3. Select Control Panel 4. Select Network and Internet Connections 5. Pick Network Connections. 6. Right-click your Internet connection, and then click Properties. 7. Click the Advanced tab in the Properties dialog box. 8. Click Settings, and the Advanced Settings dialog box opens. 9. Go to Exceptions From there you can enable most common services just by clicking them, or add you may add own by clicking the Add Program button.... Read More

 My predisposition to command line solutions to problems stems from my UNIXness and, well, I'll admit that it's fun to intimidate GUI users. However, there are times that command line solutions are the best fit for a problem. For example, if you find yourself frequently switching between a static IP address and DHCP for a network interface as happens with laptops sometimes, wouldn't it be nice to have a command that could fit in a batch file? The netsh command in XP SP2 makes this possible. This recipe shows the command to make an interface use DHCP.To make the interface Local Area Network use DHCP instead of a static address, use the command (all on one line): netsh int ip set address name="Local Area Connection" source=dhcp Other interface names can be substituted as needed.... Read More

 Portable Firefox web browser is intended for use on portable media such as a USB flash drive but it can also be used on any hard disk drive. The browsercan run quite slow, but there are hacks/tweaks to make it run faster. First we need to eliminate the amount of RAM Firefox uses for it's cache feature Here's how to fix it: 1. type "about:config" (no quotes) in the browser address bar 2. Find browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewer 3. set it's value to "0" Increase the Speed in Which Firefox loads pages 1. stay in about:config 2. Alter the entries as follows: Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true" Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true" Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to some number like 30 (this might piss off some website owners as it will request the page 30 times) 3. Lastly right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set its value to "0". This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it ... Read More

 I really get tired of going to the Control Panel everytime I need to use the Add/Remove Programs applet. Here's how to add it to the context menu of 'My Computer':Open up Notepad and copy the following: Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\shell\Add/Remove Programs\command] @="control appwiz.cpl" Save the text file and rename it to for example "XP_AddRemovePrograms_MyComputer_Context". Then merge it into the registry by double clicking it.... Read More

 People often place little value on "virtual space," randomly saving files to wherever is convenient and later kicking themselves and their computer because they cannot find the file when they need it. By using these tips as a starting point, you can reduce the stress of finding files and have a much more organized file system on your computer. This will also make it much easier to backup your data and to copy it out if the system needs to be reloaded.1. Use "My Documents". 2. Develop a naming scheme for the kinds of files you create most often and then stick to it. 3. Separate ongoing and completed work. To keep the My Documents folder from becoming too unwieldy, use it only for files you're working on. This reduces the number of files you need to search through and the amount of data you need to back up. Every month or so, move the files you're no longer working on to a different folder or locationpreferably a different partition or drive. You can archive them on a folder on your desk... Read More

 Sometimes it becomes necessary to get a new IP address or update DHCP options sent by a DHCP server, for example when moving a laptop from one network to another. A simple command will renew the DHCP lease.To renew all DHCP leases, use this command from a command prompt: ipconfig /renew... Read More

 Every network needs a DNS (domain name service) server, right? Windows comes with a DNS server, but it isn't installed by default. This will tell you how to install a DNS server on a Windows 2003 server.As an administrator on the system, click Start -> Control Panel -> Add or Remove Programs -> Add/Remove Windows Components. In the window that opens, click on the Networking Services line (careful not to uncheck the box to the left) and click Details. Find the line for Domain Name System (DNS), click the checkbox on its left, and Click OK. Click Next. If Windows asks for a CD-ROM, do as it requests. When it is done, click Finish and you'll have your very own DNS server.... Read More

 Free GUI replacement for ipconfig.exeIf you are a network guy, you probably use ipconfig. Microsoft has released a GUI IP configuration tool that is pretty nice. Despite what the microsoft directions say, the program is not installed into the default path when it is first installed. The default installation directory is C:\Program Files\Resource Kit. What I figure most people do is move WNTIPCFG.EXE to c:\windows after installation. Alternatively, you could just drag it onto the programs section of your start menu or onto your desktop to quickly create a shortcut.... Read More

 To enable Internet Connection Sharing on a network connection follow these steps. First, Open Network Connections. Click the dial-up, local area network, PPPoE, or VPN connection you want to share, and then, under Network Tasks, click Change settings of this connection. On the Advanced tab, select the Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection check box. If you want this connection to dial automatically when another computer on your home or small office network attempts to access external resources, select the Establish a dial-up connection whenever a computer on my network attempts to access the Internet check box. If you want other network users to enable or disable the shared Internet connection, select the Allow other network users to control or disable the shared Internet connection check box. Under Internet Connection Sharing, in Home networking connection, select any adapter that connects the computer sharing its Internet connection to the o... Read More

 We have clients that have laptops with a static IP in one office & use dhcp in the main office. These are some bat files that can be used to switch from static to dhcp & back so they can log on to either part of the domain with as little inconvenience as possible. All the client has to do is double click the appropriate .bat file for thier location. These have saved me a lot of time changing configs when the clients are in the main office. The dhcp bat is: netsh interface ip set address "Local Area Connection" dhcp The Static bat is: netsh interface ip set address "Local Area Connection" static 127.0.0.1 255.xxx.xxx.xxx 127.xxx.xxx.xxx 1 The first series of numbers is the IP, the second series is the Subnet Mask, the third series is the Gateway, & the last number is the multiplier And of course you create these in notepad & save as dhcp.bat & static.bat. or you can name them by location Topeka.bat & Lawrence.bat There is also a .bat to check the config after you run one of the batch fi... Read More

 During troubleshooting and system configuration, it is sometimes helpful to get a look at a host's routing table. This recipe describes viewing the routing table from the command prompt in Windows.From a command prompt, type the following command to view the complete routing table: route print This will display a list of the active network interfaces by name and MAC address, all active routes, and all persistent routes. A persistent route is one that will still be around after a reboot. The active route information includes the Network Destination, Netmask, Gateway, Interface, and Metric. The Network Destination and Netmask describe the destination of the route. The Gateway is the IP address through which packets must be routed to get to the destination network. The Interface represents the IP address on the network interface on the local system that will be used to reach the gateway. The Metric is a cost associated with the route. Given two routes to the same destination network, the ... Read More

 A route describes the gateway IP address and network interface to use when sending packets to a network. The routing table on a host holds a list of destination networks and the routes to those networks. This recipe describes adding entries to this routing table that will not persist following a reboot. These temporary routes are useful during troubleshooting or when making changes to the network topology.To add a route to the network 192.168.1.1/24 (corresponding to a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0) through the gateway 172.16.100.1, use the following command: route add 192.168.1.1 mask 255.255.255.0 172.16.100.1 This is the simplest method of adding a temporary route. The subnet mask parameter is optional and defaults to 255.255.255.255 which specifies that the target is a single IP address instead of a network. An optional routing metric can be added to the route command for more complex situations. The metric can be considered a cost for using the route. If a routing table contains mu... Read More

 This is another of my ongoing recipes. This recipe contains useful ingredients and methods to troubleshoot network problems. We all have them. :-)Wireless Networks I run a 802.11G wifi at home and know the pains at times of using wireless. A few tips and general practices: -ALWAYS secure your wifi using WEP (64 or 128 bit) or some form of security. However, also remember too that the more security/encryption you put on it the more bandwidth the security will consume thus slow down your wifi network. I recommend 128bit to be on the safe side. -Another good security tip to avoid being wardriven.. turn mac address authentication on in your wireless access point/router. This option allows only the specified MAC address to be allowed on the wireless network (MAC = physical address of the network card/pc card). -The windows wireless network connection is pretty good. i tried to use third party ones but they were just fluff mostly. In the network setup, be sure to use the exact WEP key you us... Read More

 This article describes how to install the NetBEUI protocol on a Windows XP-based computer. This may be useful because the NetBEUI protocol is not included in the list of installable protocols in Windows XP even though the files that are needed to install the protocol are included with the installation CD-ROM. It is important to note that the NetBEUI protocol is not supported on Windows XP. The Netnbf.inf and Nbf.sys files are the files that are needed to install the NetBEUI protocol. To install the NetBEUI protocol: 1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click Network Connections. 2. Right-click the adapter you want to add NetBEUI to, and then click Properties. 3. On the General tab, click Install. 4. Click Protocol, and then click Add. 5. Click Have Disk, insert your Windows XP CD-ROM, open the Valueadd\msft\net\netbeui folder, click the Netnbf.inf file, and then click Open. 6. Click OK, and then click OK to complete the installation. email me: mikejc@cashette.com michae... Read More

 This tweak is for broad band cable connections on stand alone machines with winXP professional version - might work on Home version also. It will probably work with networked machines as well but I haven't tried it in that configuration. This is for windows XP only, it does not work on win2000. I use 3 Com cards so I don't know how it works on others at this point. It does not involve editing the registry. This tweak assumes that you have let winXP create a connection on install for your cable modem/NIC combination and that your connection has tcp/ip - QoS - file and print sharing - and client for microsoft networks , only, installed. It also assumes that winxp will detect your NIC and has in-box drivers for it. If it doesn't do not try this. In the "My Network Places" properties (right click on the desktop icon and choose properties), highlight the connection then at the menu bar choose "Advanced" then "Advanced Settings". Uncheck the two boxes in the lower half for the bindings for F... Read More