Dual adapters crossover etc

[alienware]

Hey guys. I know absolutely nothing about networking. I do know how to share folders and drives, and I even managed to network into my Xbox once using a crossover cable, but that's as far as it goes.. Here is my situ.

I have two pcs within three feet of one another. One is used for my daily grind and thus all of my downloads end up there (here). The other I switch on when this one switches off and I use that for media. Thus as you can see it's a pain because I download a new south park here for example then in the evening I want to add it to my series collection on the other PC and I have no means of transferring it unless I want to use a SD card and it's painfully slow.

Now. I have a hard network card in each PC as well as a wireless one. I have connected the crossover to the hard network so that I can obtain full speed and want to share a 160gb drive I have on the media pc so I can dump stuff on there from here. What makes this hard though is I tried it before and it refused to use the network cards (wired) for it and instead used my wireless. It was so slow I gave up.

So, what I need to do is this.

Keep my wireless cards in use for the internet and tell dumb Windows to use the network cards (cabled) and talk through the network using the cable so I get top speed.

If any one can help me with this I would be truly grateful. Thanks guys and gals !

 

[tinytomlogan]

Simple answer is you cant do it mate. You need to try and get the main network wired (tinterweb) and probs wouldnt hurt getting a gigabit switch. Internet goes into the switch then all the PC's simply plug into the switch, good thing about this is everything will be able to see and interact with everything thats on the switch.

 

[alienware]

This is why I absolutely hate windows. On a mac or Linux box you can look for mac adresses and specify what you want doing what. Here you can see why it's so annoying.

so it's refusing to use the wired cards with the crossover connection and instead sending it wirelessly even though I don't want it to.

Cables in the house are absolutely out of the question sadly, so I'll have to leave it and chalk another black mark on the windows being crap box.

 

[tinytomlogan]

This is why I absolutely hate windows. On a mac or Linux box you can look for mac adresses and specify what you want doing what. Here you can see why it's so annoying.

so it's refusing to use the wired cards with the crossover connection and instead sending it wirelessly even though I don't want it to.

Cables in the house are absolutely out of the question sadly, so I'll have to leave it and chalk another black mark on the windows being crap box.

Thats well slow, might want to look at increasing your internal wireless fella. Or just setting up something small as a firewall box or something and have everything in the pc room wired. Theres always ways around it just depends how bad you want it.

 

[alienware]

Apparently that's completely normal. If your wireless cards are being used for the net Windows throttles network speeds to 5mb meaning you get about 1mb left for transferring files. However... There is a way to actually get the wireless in use on the net and use the wired cards for home networks.

Now I don't know if this is because I am using 7 Pro on each machine and thus the networking allows better use, or, whether this would work in any version of 7.

The way to do it as instructed (and working after a reboot) is to go into the network and sharing center.

Click on change adapter settings.

Make sure the wired card is enabled.

Right click and select properties. (the wired card)

Under networking (left side tab) right click Internet protocol version 4 ( TCP/IPv4) and go to properties.

On the first PC use the IP address 192.168.5.1 (as apparently this won't clash with your wireless cards)

It will then say it needs a subnet mask. Click OK and it (by default) will add 255.255.255.0

Click OK a few times until it closes. Then go to the second PC, enter the properties of the other wired card (after making sure it is enabled) and follow the above only use 192.168.5.2

As you do that it will add the same subnet mask. OK OK OK etc then reboot both machines.

And hey presto !

With the wireless being used for the net

 

[AMDFTW]

so is that using your net?

thats fast lol

 

[tinytomlogan]

Good stuff dudio, now its just your hard drives making it slow

(I max my gigabit network out

)

 

[alienware]

Ahh.. See it's not gigabit lol. The one in here is (on the Asus) but the Asrock only has a 100

Still, it does. Still faster than a memory stick

so is that using your net?

thats fast lol

EDIT. I have a 2m crossover cable linking the two wired cards..

Nah. It's all rather complicated.. I have a wireless card in each (Atheros in the main machine and Dlink thing on the Asrock one for media..) Those are for the net. There's absolutely no way to get the net ran with wires as the phone sockets are too far away and we're open plan. Meaning I would literally need about a 300 foot network cable to do it properly (over the doors, on the skirtings etc). Because of the way the house is to do it yeah, looooads of network cable haha. There's no phone socket up here and BT are robbing bandits. Something like £120 to put in another one

Soo, due to the wireless speed for transfers of files over the network being utter bottom I wanted to use the wired cards. But Windows doesn't have a box in the homegroups that allows you to select how you want to send them, and, defaults to the wireless. And because Windows has problems doing two things at once with a wireless adapter it automatically drops transfer speeds over a homegroup to 5mb and you get about a quarter of that.. Then allowing for interference (as the signal needs to go downstairs to the router and then back up to a PC three feet away) it drops to half of that (about 750k a sec).

So, in order to get it to use both sets of both cards (wireless and wired) you need to give it no choice. That's what the IP thingy does apparently.. Good thing my mate codes software for online gambling machines and codes the server software they use to host their machines !

 

[Diablo]

Annoying, but I could have told you about the subnet mask thing, as I have to do that at uni. Incidentally, 300ft of net cable is about £40 from Aria/

 

[alienware]

And then cable ends and then cable pins and the the tool ETC. Not worth it really..

Sadly last night it messed up and reverted to wireless. But by that stage I had already shifted everything big.

 

[Diablo]

I decided after the end of a 30m cable in the loft broke, that a crimper and 100 ends was a pretty good idea. I'd figured you might have one considering your past with computers.

 

[lasher]

when I bought my house, one of the first things to go in was cat6 shielded cables to the lounge through to my Sanctuary ( outhouse / computer room ).

much to our lasses disgust as its bright purple cable

slowly, and I mean slowly getting all the rooms networked, need a gigabit switch as the netgear one I use is 10/100.

Still fast enough for my requirements and flawless too. Kids all have lappys that can share through it too.

Xbox and Wii all connected and shared too.

If your struggling think I have a few hundred meters of cable left in the shed. As you mention will need the connectors etc..

Can sort a decent price if you do consider hardwiring. But thats for a different thread and sub forum ofc.

 

[alienware]

I decided after the end of a 30m cable in the loft broke, that a crimper and 100 ends was a pretty good idea. I'd figured you might have one considering your past with computers.

I had it all mate. Sadly when leaving the USA behind life went in order of importance given that I only had three suitcases

Clothes obs came first. I had an Alienware MJ12 in a suitcase on its own and the other one was memories (photos, car plates, things like that).

If I listed the tools I left behind you'd cry for me haha.