Introduction To Windows Networking

Introduction To Windows Networking
What is Windows Networking?
The term networking covers a broad range of the topics and technologies. A computer network is segmented into different parts to share the data and resourced between the different computers of a network. Microsoft has released the operating systems that have the networking capabilities so Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows 2003, Windows XP Professional and Windows Vista all are the network operating systems. All these operating systems have built inn capabilities of files and printer sharing, security, network administrative control, protocols support such as TCP/IP, NetBIOS, IPX/SPX and network hardware support.
Naming Computers
All computers in a Windows based network requires a unique name for their identification i.e. the name of the computer A cannot be assigned to the computer B and so on. Assign a meaningful computer name to all the computers and the name should be easy to remember. All the names should be configured properly and ensure that the name is not longer than the 15 characters and they contain no spaces in them. Also try to avoid the special names while naming the computers such as / \ *,:,. To assign a computer name in Windows XP and Windows 2000 do the following things.
1. Right click on the My Computer.
2. Click Properties
3. Click on Computer name.
4. Assign a unique and meaningful computer name.

Naming Workgroup and Domains
A Windows based computer network can be a workgroup (Peer to Peer) or domain (client/server). You can make your computer a part of the workgroup or a domain. If you have centralized server then your computer will be part of the domain and if you have no server then all computers will be having peer to peer networking. In both cases, while joining your computer to a domain or a workgroup always assign unique, sequenced, memorable and meaningful names to the computers. Do not use duplicate names and the special characters such as / \ *,:,,. In order to join a computer to a domain or workgroup in Windows 2000 and Windows XP Professional do the following.
1. Right Click on My Computer
2. Click Properties
3. Click on Computer Name
4. In Workgroup or domain, enter the name of the workgroup or domain.
If everything is correct such as unique computer name, unique IP address, correct workgroup or domain name then you computer will be the part of the workgroup or domain in the few seconds and you will be see a welcome to domain or workgroup message and will be prompted to restart the computer name.
Files Sharing
Being on network computer files and printer sharing is a must. To enable the files and folder sharing in Windows XP Professional 2000 and Windows 2000 do the following.
1. Right Click on the folder name you want to share.
2. Click on the properties.
3. Click Sharing.
4. Click on Share this computer on the network.
5. Assign a shared computer name.
You can set the sharing rights for the users and also control the shared folder access by allowing and denying permissions to specific users or groups. If you want to share the individual files, you can put the files in the same shared folder. All the files and folders in the parent shared folder will be automatically shared.
Network Configurations Overview
A computer network can be configured and installed in different ways depending upon the requirements. If you are responsible for managing your computer network, securing and ensuring the uptime then you need a precise solution for your devices configurations. A network can also be configured, managed and administered through the third party software such as DeviceExpert that can be used to manage the switches, routers, firewall and computers in your network. Each device in a network such as computer, printer, scanner, switch and router is known as a node.

If you manage a big network then it is very important to store the configurations of each node so that you can view, store and use the same configurations any time. In Windows XP Professional, you can store and maintain multiple configurations for your home and office networks. Different vendors provide different network configurators and management software. These software allow the network administrators to save and view the network settings.
Some of the best network configurator programs are D-Link Network Configurator, PE Network Configurator, Rapid Network Configurator and DeviceExpert. In this article we will learn that how to configure the multiple services such as DHCP, DNS and devices as routers and LAN card in an Ethernet network. The following information is mandatory for configuring a computer network.
• Host Name of computers
• IP Addresses of the computers.
• Subnet Mask
• Default gateway address
• IP Address of the router
• Domain Name
• DNS Address
• DHCP Address
• Troubleshooting home network is a most important task of every home computer user and every person who manages the home network must learn the basic home network troubleshooting tips. Following are the some of the most important home networking errors and their solutions. Troubleshooting File and Printer Sharing
• In a home computer network you can share files and resources such as printers, scanner, hard disks, CD-ROM and internet etc.
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• To see the shared folders of another computer in the network type the shared name of the network computer in this format \\sharedcomputername and press enter. A window will appear that will display the icons for the shared folders of another computer.
• Following are the some of the basic methods that solve the file and printer sharing problem.
• 1. Name each network computer correctly.
2. Set workgroup or domain name correctly in each computer.
3. Install TCP/IP on each computer.
4. Configure IP addressing and subnet masking on each computer correctly.
5. Make sure that the shares are correctly configured on the network.
6. Temporarily disable firewalls.
7. Make sure that the Files and Printer Sharing for Microsoft is installed on each computer.
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• Repairing Network Connections
• Troubleshooting network sometimes can be a difficult task if you don’t have the ideas about the solutions of the problems. To avoid any major problem and long downtime the network administrators should be well aware of all the major networking errors and their solutions. Microsoft Windows XP Professional has a repair tool and many of the basic problems can be solved by this tool.
• Double click the network connection icon in the lower right corner of the screen and then click repair. This tool will repair the basic connectivity problems.

• Computer can’t get connected with the Internet
• If any of the network computers can’t get connected with the internet, try to solve the problem with the basic steps.
• 1. Check the IP address of the computer. It should have the same class IP address as subnet mask as the other computer in your home network.
2. Network cable should be properly connected at both ends i.e. one end with the Hub/Switch and one end with the LAN card of the PC.
3. Scan the system for the viruses, spyware and other malicious code that may be halting the browsing on that computer.
4. Gateway computer and proxy server should not be blocking the computer for browsing.
5. Check the browser settings and it should be the same and the rest of the computers in the network.
• Network Application don’t work
• Sometimes certain network applications such as peer to peer file sharing, network games, databases and antivirus programs can’t get connected with the server even the network connectivity is okay. The specific knowledge about each application can be the best solution for resolving the issues.
• Network is too slow
• Sometimes network response time is very slow due to different reasons and this problem can be solved by the following methods.
• 1. First of all check that the computer should have the valid DNS address and you can also add the domain controller’s IP address as secondary DNS server.
2. Make sure that you have installed service pack 1, which has fixed a bug for slow network response.
3. If your system hangs about 2-3 times at startup, this is due to a background service named “Background Intelligent Transfer' service”. By disabling this service you can solve this problem. Go to Start > Run > MsConfig > Services > “Background Intelligent Transfer' service” disable it.
4. Disable/Enable the local network connection and if still slow network connection then restart the system.
5. Create a drive Map and use it for network browsing. Click on any folder then go to Tools > and click Map network drive > assign a drive letter and a folder name that you want to connect too.
• Network Connection is insecure
• The real threats to the home networks are viruses, spyware, Trojan horses, data piracy and the hacker’s attacks. Install and configure an up-to-dated antivirus program such as Norton Anti Virus, Trend Micro, McAfee or Panda Antivirus. Install and configure firewall software so that no unauthorized user can access your home network. Scan your emails and do not download any software from unauthorized source.
• Troubleshooting Tools
• Here is a list of some of the basic troubleshooting tools that comes with the Windows based operating systems.
• 1. Ping
2. IPconfig
3. Tracert
4. Hostname
5. Route
6. Net
7. ARP
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Configuring LAN Card
In Windows XP Professional, you can configure your system’s LAN card by the following method.
Click Start > Control Panel > Double Click Network Connections > Right Click Local Area Connection.
In General click TCP/IP and click properties.




In the properties tab you can set the TCP/IP settings such as IP address, subnet mask, default gateway and DNS etc.
You can repeat the above methods with all the LAN cards of your network.
Configuring Printer
A network printer can be installed, configured, shared and managed through the control panel of Windows XP Professional and other versions of the Windows.
Click Start > Control Panel > Double click Printer and Faxes
Right click your default printer and click properties.
Here you can share your printer, set the ports and printing priorities.
Configuring DHCP
DCHP stands for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol and is used for assigning the IP addresses to the client computers dynamically. DHCP is installed in the Windows 2000 Server and Windows 2003 Server operating systems. A DCHP is a dedicated server which assigns the IP address, subnet mask, gateway address, DNS, DHCP and router addresses to all the client computers.
After the DHCP is installed in the Windows 2003 Server, you need to configure it before you use it.
In the Administrative tools of Windows 2000/2003 Server click DHCP.
• On the left side of your DHCP panel, you will see your server name with server’s IP address.
• Right click the name and click new scope. A wizard will start click next and define your scope name and description.
• In the IP addresses range, define the IP addresses pool and subnet mask and click next. In the “Add Exclusion page” define the IP addresses, which you don’t want to assign to any computer after this click next.
• On the next windows set the lease duration for these IP addresses and click next. On the next windows check “Yes I want to configure these options now”.
After you have configured the scope, right click to activate it. You can also set the router, DHCP, DNS, Wins server addresses.
Configuring DNS
DNS stands for Domain Name Server and is used for mapping the host name with the IP address. DNS is automatically installed while promoting the server as a domain controller. DNS can also be configured to a separate machine. After the DNS is installed, you need to configure it.
• In the Administrative tools of the Windows 2000/2003 click DNS.
• Right click on the root and select configure server and click next.
• If there are no root servers in the list select the current server, which shows the message “This is the first DNS server on the network” and click next.
• Add a forward look up zone and click next. This zone will be used for mapping and storing the host name to the IP addresses.
• Select the zone type as standard primary and click next.
• Enter the name of the zone and click next.
• Select new file and click next. Here you can import an already existing .dns file.
• Add a reverse look up zone and click next. Reverse look up zone is used to find the host name from an IP address.
• Select the zone type and standard primary and click next.
• Enter first two (in case of 255.255.0.0) and first three (in case of 255.255.255.0) parts of your subnet mask.
• Select new file and click next.
• A summary will display click finish to complete the configuration.
The final stage is to configure the zones to be dynamic update enabled, it makes the host computers to add the records in the DNS server.
Configuring Router
A router is used to connect several logically and physically different networks with each other. When a router is used for the first time it needs to be configured manually by the network administrators.
• Start your browser and type the IP address of your router.
• Router configuration page will be opened.
• Enter your user and default password of the router.
• You can configure firewall options, dynamic routing, static routing, DDNS, forwarding and filtering options.

Network Cable Errors in Windows
If your computer network cable is not working properly, you will see a repeated message or pop up “network cable is unplugged” on your desktop and the blinking status lights of the network will also stop blinking. There can be many causes of this problem and you can fix this error with these simple tips. If you have another Ethernet adapter installed but not using it, then disable it by right clicking on the monitor icons on the right side of the desktop and select the disable option. Check both ends of the cables and ensure that the RJ 45 connectors are properly inserted in the LAN card and in the Hub/Switch. Update the drive of the LAN card from the vendor’s website and if the problem still exist then replace the cable with new one. If the problem is still not resolved then replace the LAN card with a new one and try to use a new hub or switch and put cable’s one end into it. By these simple steps, you will be able to trace out and troubleshoot the problem.
Introduction to Windows Firewall
Windows firewall is a protective layer or boundary that monitors the in and out traffic from your network and internet. The firewall is a protective and defensive boundary against the intruders and unauthorized persons. You can enable the firewall in XP Professional with these simple steps.
1. Click Start > Settings > Control Panel
2. Windows Firewall > Double click.
Network Troubleshooting Tips
If you find a communication failure error in the TCP/IP network then try to find and troubleshoot the errors with the following methods.
1. Make sure you can ping the other computer by name.
2. Make sure you can pint the other computer by IP address.
3. Make sure you have assigned unique IP address and computer name to all the computers in the network.
4. Make sure you have assigned the correct gateway, subnet mask, DNS and DHCP addresses.
5. For troubleshooting purpose try to uninstall any firewall software and see if the problem is resolved.
Windows Network Security
Security a computer network should be the top priority of the network administrators, system managers and security specialists. You can secure your computer network by doing these things such as installing the updated operating system, up-to-date antivirus program, event log monitoring, encryption, group policy management, patch management, security scanners, auditing, firewall security, web application security, web content filtering and controlling the access to only the authorized users.
How to Setup Workgroup and Computer Name in Windows XP
Computer name is the unique identifier of the computer in the network. If you want to setup the computer name and the workgroup in the Windows XP then follow these steps.
1. My Computer>Right Click>click on Properties>
2. Assign unique computer name.
3. Assign the same workgroup name as of the other computers.
4. You will be prompted to restart the computer.
How to secure your computer network
Securing a computer networking is the vital part of the administration of the network. There are different security threats of a computer network such as hacking, viruses, unauthorized user access, spywares, adware, Trojan horses and other malicious codes. If you are managing your computer network, it’s your responsibility to secure your network from all above mentioned aspects. Always install up to dated antivirus program such as Norton Antivirus, Trend Micro Antivirus, McAfee or Panda Antivirus. Enable firewall router or firewall software on your network to control the unauthorized access so that no intruder or hacker can access your network.

Filter the internet and monitor all the activities of the users on the internet. Block the risky websites and web applications. Install a network monitoring software and monitor the activities of users. Regularly update your software applications on the server and the client computers.

How to Share Printer and Folders in Windows XP
If you have two or more computers then a computer network will be formed and there will be necessity to share the files and printers. For sharing the folders, you need to right click the folder > Sharing and Security > Share this folder on the network > give the shared name for this folder. You can set further rights and permissions on this folder for different users.

Sharing a printer is the same as sharing a folder on the network. Click start > Control Panel > Printer and Faxes > Right click on the printer name > Properties > sharing > Share this folder (set the shared name for the printer. This same shared name of the printer will be accesses from the other computers on the network to access and share the printer such as \\computename\printername
Setting up Print Server in Windows 2000 ?
What is a Printer?
Printer is a device that prints text, graphics and images on the paper. With regards to quality, graphics, speed there are different types of a printer. The most common types of the printer are Dot matrix, InkJet and Laser printer. In the following sections of this article we will discuss all the common types of printer.
Common Types of Printer
Dye Fusion Thermal
Thermal Dye sublimation or thermal dye transfer is a process that is used by the color printers. A color wax film is moved throughout the page and pigments are heated and deposited on the page.
Inkjet
Inkjet printers use spray and print them on the paper. They produce high quality prints and have better image quality and they are faster as compared to the DOT Matrix printers. Due to low cost, high quality and ease of use, they are most commonly used printers.

Laser Jet
Laser printers use xerographic printing process, which is a same technique as used by the photocopier machine. In the laser printer, the roller is charged with the electricity and the laser light is used to remove that charge from the roller. Laser printer is very fast and they produce high quality and text, graphics and images.
Dot Matrix
In the Dot Matrix, pins are used to strike the ribbon and dots, characters and images are produced when pin strikes the ribbon. The columns of 8, 9 and 24 pins are used in the Dot matrix. Dot matrix printers have horizontally moving head and pins in the vertical position. Dot matrix printers are mostly cheap and they are used for low to medium quality of printing.

LCD/LED
This is a type of printers that uses the liquid and light emitting diodes LED to produce the produce the images on the roller.
Camera Copy
Camera copy printers produce high quality full color output and the laser light is used to write on the film inside the camera. This type of printing process is expensive.
Line Printer
Line printers have horizontal drum that stretch the paper. The drum is made up of 132 thin cylinders and each have a complete set of characters.
Daisy Wheel
Daisy wheel printers work like the typewriters.
What is a Print Server
A print server is a computer or device that is being connected with one more print devices or printers. Print server holds an operating system such as Windows 2000, Windows 2003 and the client computers send print requests to the print server. The print server serves these requests on the first come first serve basis but there are features in the printing software with which the print jobs can be prioritized i.e. you can give preferences to some printing requests. Client computers connect with the print server by using the Microsoft Network Printing Protocol. Dedicated print servers support a large number of the protocols such as TCP/IP, NetBEUI, IPX/SPX, LPD/LPR and NetBIOS.
How to Setup Print Server in Windows 2000/2003
Installation
1. Install the operating system such as Windows 2000 or Windows 2003.
2. Attach printer device with the computer. Normally operating system will automatically detect the printer and if not then you have to manually install the driver of the printer by inserting the CD-ROM. If you don’t have the drivers in the CD then you can download from the vendor’s website or from driverguide.com. You just need to know the model of your printer such as Hewlett Packard LaserJet 2600n, Canon PIXMA™ iP90 InkJet, Lexmark C534N, Canon PIXMA™ MP530 All-In-One Inkjet etc.
3. Install and configure the printer driver in the following steps.
4. Click on Start > Settings > Control Panel > Printer and Faxes.
5. Click on the File Menu > Add printer > Next > Local Printer attached to this computer.
6. Check Automatically Detect and Install My Plug and Play Printer.
7. Click Next.
8. Wizard will automatically detect any attached printer and install the driver for it. If the system doesn’t find the driver then you will be prompted to provide the driver of the printer.
9. After successfully installing the printer driver, you will see a new printer name in the Printer and Faxes inside the control panel.
Server Configurations
1. Right click on the printer name > Properties > Sharing > Share this printer.
2. Provide a shared name for your network printer.
3. This name will be used by all the client computers on the network who want to access this printer.
4. You can also set the color management, priorities, printing preferences, font and other things in the properties tab of the printer.
Client Computer Configuration
If you want to setup the printer at the client computer then you can do this by the following command.
\\computername\printername (printer name is the shared name of the printer)
Second option is the same as you installed the print device on the server i.e. Start > Settings > Control Panel > Printers and Faxes > File Menu > Add Printer.
In this tutorial you have learnt that what is a printer, basic types of the printers and how to setup print server in Windows 2000/2003.
How to troubleshoot computer network using Ping command
The PING command is the basic network troubleshooting command. Ping shows the status of the other computer whether it is on the network or not. Let’s say you have three computers in your computer network computer A (IP Address, 10.10.10.1), computer B (IP address 10.10.10.2) and computer C (IP address 10.10.10.3). You are on computer A and you want to check the connectivity of the computer B then you will need to go the Start > Run > type CMD > DOS screen will appear. Now type there ping 10.10.10.2 if you get the reply this means the computer B is connected on the network and if you get the timed out message then there is some problem in the connectivity. This can be due to different reasons like check both the ends of the network cables in the computer and in the Router/Switch, check if the green LED light is blinking in the network card of the computer also check if any software application blocking the network communication such as firewall or antivirus etc.
How to setup Xbox Network Connections
Following is the simple configuration methods of Xbox network connectivity.
1. Go to the settings of Xbox Dashboard and then network settings. You will see IP address, DNS and some other settings.
2. Click IP settings. You can select to obtain the IP address and other settings automatically from the DHCP server or router.
3. Go to the previous menu and set obtain the DNS settings from the Router or DHCP server automatically.
How to Setup Roaming Profile in Windows 2000/2003
Roaming profiles are saved on the network server. If you want your users to access their own roaming profiles then you need to open Active directory users and computers, right click on the user, then properties and then profile tab. In the profile tab type the UNC path of the user you made on the server like this \\servername\profiles\%username%. Profiles folder should be in the root of the C Drive. Make sure you have created the profiles folder on the C drive and shared it with the same name as the name of the folder. Next time when the user will log on from the client computer, his/her local profile will be saved in the folder same as the user name and this folder will be created in the profiles folder.
How to Install IIS in Windows XP
Windows XP Professional edition has the built-in IIS. Internet information server is used to host the website on your own computer and these sites can be accesses from all over the world. IIS has great administrative features but it supports only 10 concurrent connections of the clients at a time.
1. Click start>settings>control panel>Add remove program
2. Click Add remove windows components.
3. Click on Internet information services > Details.
4. In the IIS check the boxes SMTP and World Wide Web and you can also check FTP if you want to setup it.
5. In Windows components selection, make sure that you have selected IIS and you may need to insert the CD of Windows XP Professional during the installation.
How to Setup Roaming Profiles in Windows 2000
The TCP/IP component in the Windows operating systems is considered a core component so it cannot be easily uninstalled. Using the following commands with the certain switch you can however achieve the same results and by uninstalling and reinstalling the TCP/IP components.
netsh int ip reset
Logfile is the name of the file that is used to records the actions by the netsh command.
netsh int ip reset iplog.txt is used to create the iplog.txt in the current directory.
Caution: Be very careful while using these commands because they can directly damage your system.
How to Hide a shared folder in Windows XP
If you want to hide a shared folder from the network users, right click the folder and click sharing and security and give a shared name of a folder plus $ sign e.g. ebooks$. In this way network users will not be able to see the shared folder on the network. For you to see the hidden shared folder, map the drive and type in the path including the $ sign in the folder box.
How to Clean the Start Menu
The start menu of the Windows XP is populated with the number of shortcuts and newly installed programs. If you want to remove any of the programs from the start menu just right click on that program and click “Remove from this list”. The program will be removed from the start menu. Additionally, there are certain programs at the right side such as My documents, Run, Search etc and if you want to customize this list then right click on the empty place > Properties > Start Menu > Customize.
You will see a number of options there such as Large Icons, Small Icons and number of programs in the list. In the advance tab you will see the three options such as 1. display as a link, 2. display as a menu and 3. Don’t list this item and you can choose these options for the control panel, my documents, my music and my computer etc.
How to Distribute a Custom Desktop Theme to Users
Here you will learn that how to distribute a customized desktop theme to the other users in the network.
You can send the customized them by email or by placing at the user’s desktop computer through the My Network Places. Users on the other computer will do the following steps to get the customized theme.
1. Right click on the desktop and click properties.
2. Open the theme tab and browse it.
3. Find the folder that has the theme file and double click it.
4. Click ok to load the new theme and close all the windows.

After letting you wait for a while Windows XP load the customized theme and apply all the new settings to your desktop.
How to Create a Hardware Profile
Hardware profiles are used in multiple environments such as LAN, mobile and standalone. You can create hardware profiles in Windows XP Professional by doing the following steps.
1. Click start > Settings > Control Panel > double click system
2. Click hardware and the hardware profile. You can select eight docked or undocked profile.
3. Click copy type the profile name such as mobile and click Ok
4. Click mobile > Properties > and check this is a portable computer
5. Provides a description of the profile.

Create a Shortcut to Network Location
You can create a shortcut to the new network place by the following steps.
1. Start > Control Panel > Network and Internet connection.
2. Click "add a network place."
3. Choose another network location and click next.
4. In the internet or network address box type the name of the network that you want to use.
5. You can type the network address by this format \\Servername\Sharename
6. Type the FTP address by this format ftp://ftp.domain.com
7. Click next > Finish
How to Troubleshoot LAN
Troubleshooting the local area network means identifying and removing the network problems for getting the optimized performance. In order to troubleshoot the problem in the LAN, it is important to monitor the LAN to identify the problems. LAN monitoring can be accomplished with the network management computer or general network sniffers. Protocol Analyzer provides various LAN troubleshooting solutions over the TCP/IP networks.
LAN/TCP/IP troubleshooting can often be tricky and the troubleshooting scenarios includes finding duplicate IP addresses on the network computers, misconfigured network applications, non-optimized network devices, low service performance, cabling problems, faulty LAN cards and network switches, viruses and spyware attacks, misconfigured firewall, security issues, DNS/DHCP problems, proxy server’s settings and overloading of the network servers with the number of software applications.
The problems in the Local Area Network can be aroused by a number of reasons as mention above. Being a LAN/Network administrator it’s your responsibility that you are well aware of your LAN infrastructure, network hardware, software, user access rights and preferences and the major configurations of the network. The best practice is to make inventory of all the resources of your LAN such as number of workstations, software installed and network hardware.

Following section provides the useful tips in diagnosing and troubleshooting the most common problems in your LAN. Whenever you face connectivity issues, security issues and performance issues the following tips are helpful in diagnosing troubleshooting the problems.
Connectivity Issues
• First thing to check it to make sure that you have the same class IP address and the associated subnet mask in all the computers in your LAN.
• Make sure that you have provided the accurate gateway address on all the computers.
• Ensure that all the network cables are tightly plugged at both ends i.e. one end in the Hub/Switch and one in the LAN card.
• Make sure that the lights on the Hub/Switch and LAN card are ON and working.
• If you are behind a proxy server and facing internet connectivity issues, make sure that you have provided the accurate proxy server’s settings at the client computers.

• Check your firewall settings and make sure that the firewall is not blocking the incoming and outgoing traffic.
• Use the PING command at the common prompt to verify the connectivity with the other computer.
Example
At command prompt
Ping 100.100.100.1 and press enter (100.100.100.1 is the IP address of the other computer)
• If the connectivity issue is with the particular computer, reinstall the driver of the NIC adapter and if the problem is still there then change the NIC adapter and reconfigure it.
• If the connectivity problem still not resolved then check the network cable from computer to HUB/Switch
Security Issues
Security issues are more likely to occur in the LAN if no proper security mechanism, policies, antivirus programs and security methods have been implemented.
• Install up-to-dated antivirus and anti spyware program and regularly scan your network server all the computers in the network.
• In the proxy server block notorious applications that cause security issues in the network and define specific internet access rules for the users.
• Use strong passwords, encryption methods and limit the access to the network resources.
• Enable logging on all the network computers and server machine.
• Implement security policies.
• Update your operating system and install latest services packs and security patches.
• Clean computer’s registry with the excellent Windows registry cleaner software. An optimized an error free registry is required for the smooth functioning of the computer.
• Implement firewall on the gateway computer and it will save your computer from the unauthorized internal and external access.
The above tips will definitely help you out in resolving the security related issues in your LAN.
Performance Issues
The performance issues in the network occurs with the heavily installed applications, Windows registry errors, antivirus and anti spyware free systems, low or faulty hardware, low physical memory, unnecessary network shortcuts, simultaneous access to the server for the same resources and in the unmanaged network environment.
• Dividing the network in the subnets is helpful in load balancing and improving the performance.
• Remove unnecessary network shortcuts and it will increase the network browsing speed.
• Clear cookies, browser’s history and other temporary files.
• Increase the physical memory (RAM)
• Uninstall any unnecessary software applications from computers.
• Separately configure the proxy server, File server, Print server and Gateway computer to put the minimum load on each server.
• Install the LAN cards that support 10/100 Mbps speed and use Switch instead of Hub in the LAN.
hopefully the above mentioned tips are helpful in resolving the most common connectivity, security and performance related issues in
Connect to Printer by using Web Browser
By typing the URL of the remote printer in the address bar, you can connect to the remote printer as it were attached with your own computer.
To view the list of the printers in your print server type the following.
http://printservername/printers
In the web browser a page will open that will list the properties of the printer. To connect to the printer click connect under printer action. An icon of the printer and faxes folder will be added in your printer and faxes folder in your computer. You can perform the administrative tasks to theprinter as it were attached to your computer.


Encrypt a folder in Windows XP
You can encrypt a folder in Windows XP so that it cannot be read by others. Please note that the encryption is only applicable in the NTFS file system. You can encrypt a folder by doing the following steps.
1. Right click on the folder, which you want to encrypt and click properties.
2. On the general tab click Advance.
3. On the compress and encrypt attributes press the Encrypt contents to secure data.
4. Click ok.
5. If you want to encrypt only the folder click “Apply changes to this folder only” and then ok.
6. If you want to encrypt the all the contents of the folder and the parent folder then click Apply changes to this folder, subfolders and files.
Now every file or folder that will be created in the encrypted folder will automatically be encrypted. The users of the network can view the items of the encrypted folder but they cannot copy or open the contents of the encrypted folder.

How to Speed up the Computer
1. Windows Defragmenter utility: You can use this utility by using this path Start > Programs > Accessories > System tools > Disk defragmenter. This is built-in utility in Windows operating systems and this will automatically analyze the empty disk space on the hard disk and defragment and all scattered files.
2. Shutdown Unnecessary programs: By using this path Start > Run > Msconfig > Startup, you can close all unwanted programs at the Windows startup and this will automatically increase the windows loading time and speed of the computer will also be increased.
3. Increase RAM: By increasing the RAM in your system you can get exceptional fast speed of your computer.
4. Disk Cleanup: By using the disk clean up utility Start > Programs > Accessories > System tools > Disk clean up utility, you can delete unwanted programs and files from your computer and this will be helpful in increasing the speed.
5. Empty Recycle Bin: When you delete a file or a folder form your computer it first goes to the recycle bin and it covers the disk area of your C drive. It is imperative, to delete all the files and folders from the recycle bin and you will get the space of C drive for reusability.
6. Delete Temporary Files: Delete the temporary files and cookies from your computer to get the better speed. You can do this like Internet explorer > Tools > Internet options > Generals > Settings > View files > here you can delete all the temporary internet files.



How to Troubleshoot the Computer?
Here you will learn the basic troubleshooting methods of your computer.
1. Trial and error: When you find a faulty component in your computer, first of you check it with the other computers so that you can make sure whether the fault is in the component or not.
2. Check cables: In case of any device failure, check all the cables of your computer such as data cables, power cable, internal circuitry cables etc and make sure that all the cables are plugged in and working fine.
3. Hardware settings: Check the hardware settings in the CMOS and in the device manager of the system and make all the device drivers and up to date and all the cards are plugged in properly.
4. Notice changes: When you notice a software or hardware error in your computer, determine what was changed before the problem occurred.
5. Event viewer: Use the event viewer utility by going to Start > Control panel > Administrative tools > Event viewer. In the event viewer you will find the error or warning messages associated with any faulty hardware or software.
6. Make notes: Troubleshooting is big learning option and we can learn a lot when we face any kind of troubleshooting in our computer. Make notes including the error messages and their solutions, so that you have a record that how a certain problem occurred and how did you solve it.

Data Recovery Tips
Accidental loss or deletion of the critical data of your organization can cause big problems for you and for your company. If you are a system administrator or a hardware technician and responsible for your company’s data, it is your duty to equip yourself with the great system restore and data recovery utilities and if you are empty handed and you encounter such problems, there can be big financial loss for your company in case of completely removal of data and wastage of precious time. Following are the few tips for recovering the lost data.
1. Use some good data recovery utilities such as File recovery, Recovery My Files, R-tt and a free utility Handy Recovery.
2. If you are responsible for the data and system administrations, use backup tapes drives and regularly take backups of your server’s data.
3. Use UPS and diesel generators if power failure occurs regularly in your area because sudden shutdown can crash your server and other systems.
4. Make a clean humid and dust free environment for your server room.
Diagnostics with Beep Codes
Following are the beep messages associated with the IBP bios.
1 short beep specifies a normal post
2 short beeps tells about POST errors that can be find on screen.
Continuous beeps indicates power supply and other cards errors.
One long and short beep indicates system board problems
3 long beeps defines keyboard errors
No system beep tells about power supply errors.

Windows 2000 Server Installation Overview
In this section you will learn the basicss of windows 2000 server installation, how to install window, active directory, domain controllers, system configurations. Being a network administrator or Microsoft Windows 2000 Server support professional, one of your job description tasks is Windows Server Installation.
Step #1: Planning for your installation
When you run the Windows 2000 Server setup program you must know that how to install the Windows 2000 server. Thorough planning can make you avoid potential problems during the installation process. So, it’s necessary to do some paper work and make a good plan before installing the Windows 2000 server operating system. You must know the needs of your office network, server hardware and software to be installed on your server.
Without a proper plan Potential problems can occur in the future and work can become more hectic.
There are some important points, which you should take into account before starting the installation process.
1. Check System requirement
2. Check hardware and software compatibility
3. Check the disk partitioning options
4. Select the file systems according to your needs.
5. Decide workgroup or domain installation
6. Complete a pre installation checklist.
Once you are making sure about these things you can start the installation process.

Step #2: Starting the installation process
You can install Windows 2000 Server in different ways, all the methods are valid and which method you choose is depends on your needs and limitations. Manual installation process can be divided into different ways as followings.
• Boot from CD- This is a fresh installation and no existing partition is required.
• Boot from the 4 setup disks and then insert the CD, in this way also not existing partition is required.
• Boot from an MS-DOS startup floppy disk, go to the command prompt, create a 4GB FAT32 partition with FDISK command, reboot the computer, format the C partition, you have created and then go to the CD drive, go to the i386 folder and run the Winnt.exe command.
• In the other methods, run an already installed operating system such as Windows NT 4.0 Server and from within the NT 4.0 go to the i386 folder in the Windows 2000 Server installation CD and run the WINNT32.exe command. This will upgrade the Windows NT Server 4.0 to the Windows 2000 Server.
• Alternatively, if you want to upgrade from Windows 98 into Windows 2000 Professional you can follow the same steps as I have described in the above installation method. But you cannot upgrade Windows 98 into Windows 2000 server.
Additionally, there are other automated installation methods, such as uninstallation method by using an unattended file, using Sysprep, using RIS or running the uninstallation method by the CD itself.
It doesn’t matter that which installation method you use to install Windows 2000 Server or Professional. All methods look alike and the main function is the same.
Step #3: Text based portion of the setup
The setup process starts loading a blue-looking text screen. In this way you will be asked to accept the license agreement EULA and choose a partition on which you want to install Windows 2000 and you will be also asked to format the partition if the partition is new FAT, FAT32 or NTFS. The setup process begins loading a blue-looking text screen (not GUI).
1. Select to boot the computer from CD.
2. At this stage you can press F6 if you need to install the additional SCSI adapters or other storage devices. If you choose it then you will be asked to provide the floppy disk for the drivers.
3. Setup will get all the required drivers and files.
4. Now select to setup Windows 2000. At this point, if you want to fix some problems in the previously installed operating systems then you will have to press R. If not, then just press enter to continue with the fresh installation.
5. If you haven’t made any partition then you will get a warning message to create a partition and delete the old partitions. You can specify the partition size here. If you want to continue then press C.
6. Accept the license agreement and press F8.
• Select or create the partition on which you will install W2K.
• If you hard disk is already partitioned but don’t have enough disk space for the installation, you can create an additional partition from the unpartitioned space. If the hard disk is already partitioned, but has enough unpartitioned disk space, you can create an additional partition in the unpartitioned space. If the hard disk already has a existing partition, you can delete it to create more unpartitioned space for the new partition. By deleting the old partition you will delete all data on that partition.
If you select a new partition during Setup, create and size only the partition on which you will install Windows 2000. After installation, use Disk Management to partition the remaining space on the hard disk.
7. Select the file system like FAT32, NTFS for the installation partition. After you create the partition, select a file system. After selecting the file system, it will ask you to format the disk. Windows 2000 supports FAT, FAT32 and NTFS file system. You can get access to the local data on your hard disk, if it is formatted with the NTFS and if your operating system is Windows Server 2003, Windows XP Professional, Windows 2000 and Windows NT. If you plan to get data on your local hard disk’s drive where Windows 95 or Windows 98 is installed then you will have to use FAT or FAT32 file systems.
8. Setup will then begin copying files after formatting the disk, from the installation point (CD, local i386 or a network share).
9. After copying files step is completed the computer will be restarted in the graphical mode.
Step #4: Graphical user interface (GUI) based setup portion
After the first reboot and copying the necessary installation files the setup comes in the graphical mode.
Next it will load the device drivers based on the hardware it finds in your computer.
At this point, you can change the regional settings if you want.
1. Install the Hebrew language support at this point.
2. Here type your name and organization name.
3. Next type product key.
4. Enter the appropriate license types and the number of the purchased licenses.
5. Here you type the computer name and the password of the local administrator account. The local administrator account is based in the SAM of the computer and is used for the locally administrative tasks
4. Next choose which network or other components to be installed on the system.
5. Next select the date, time and zone settings.
6. Setup now will install the networking components.
Press Next to accept the typical settings option if you have one of the following situations:
• You have DHCP on your network.
• Your computer running Internet Connection Sharing (ICS).
• You are in a workgroup environment and do not plan to have any other servers or Active Directory at all, and all other workgroup members are configured in the same manner.
Otherwise select Custom Settings and press Next to customize your network settings.
7. You should highlight the TCP/IP section and press Properties.
In the following general tab enter the necessary information. You should specify the IP address, and if you don't know what the Subnet Mask entry should be - you can simply place your mouse pointer over the empty area in the Subnet Mask box and click it. The operating system will automatically detect the settings.
If you are a stand alone computer or you don’t have the sufficient rights, leave the default entry selected and press next.
8. In the next stage setup process will finish copying files and configuring the setup.
9. Next the setup process finishes and displays the finish window.
10. Next Windows 2000 reboots and you after reboot you get the CTRL-ALT-DEL window.
11. Congratulations. You are done. Windows 2000 has been installed on you computer.


How to Setup Computer Network
There are multiple options available to connect to or more computers to make a computer network. Networking is essential for sharing data and resources like printer, scanner, hard disk, CD/ROM and internet connection. After establishing the wired or wireless connections you need to check that the connectivity and the configurations of the computers are okay. Be default, Windows XP Professional computer provides a “Network Setup” utilitity
By and through this utility you can configure your whole network. You can select this utility in the Programs > Accessories > Communications > Network setup wizard.
You can share the internet connection, share the printer, share the firewall, share files and folders, create a bridge between two networks, manual server setup and create setup disk. To setup a network where in your home or office you need to know the following details.
• How many computers do you want to connect with each other?
• What type of operating systems you are running on your computer.
• Whether networked computers will be located in one room or hall or inside a building.
• What are your security requirements?
• What’s your main purpose of networking the computers?
• What type of internet connection will be used?


After knowing your requirements you can configure your network either through the setup wizard in the Windows XP or manually. You can setup the computers in the workgroup or domain.
In the Workgroup, there is no centralized management and least security while in the domain there is domain controller (centralized server) that controls the whole domain and provides services like user authentication, data sharing, resources sharing and internet connectivity to the client computers.


Network Setup Wizard in Windows XP Professional
• First of all, you need to install and configure the LAN card in every computer.
• Open network connection folder > network tasks > click setup a small office or home network.
• Click Start > Programs > Accessories > Communications > Network setup wizard.
• During the wizard, you need to select your LAN card, domain/workgroup name and other settings.
• After you successfully run the setup wizard, you will ask to create a network setup disk.
• You have to run the setup wizard on all the computers to make them connected with each other.
Setup utility safes your time and administrative efforts to configure a home or small office network. To check the connectivity between the computers, you can use the following diagnosing and administrative utilities which are installed by default with the TCP/IP protocols in the Windows based operating systems.
PING: Ping is a first troubleshooting command in the IP based networks. With this utility you can check the connectivity between two computers.
IPconfig: IPconfig is used to check the configurations of a computer such as IP address, subnet mask, DNS, gateway and DHCP addresses etc.
Tracert: Tracert is a TCP/IP utility that is used to find and record the routes between your computer and the specified destination.
Hostname: To check the name of your computer.

How to Troubleshoot LAN
Troubleshooting the local area network means identifying and removing the network problems for getting the optimized performance. In order to troubleshoot the problem in the LAN, it is important to monitor the LAN to identify the problems. LAN monitoring can be accomplished with the network management computer or general network sniffers. Protocol Analyzer provides various LAN troubleshooting solutions over the TCP/IP networks.
LAN/TCP/IP troubleshooting can often be tricky and the troubleshooting scenarios includes finding duplicate IP addresses on the network computers, misconfigured network applications, non-optimized network devices, low service performance, cabling problems, faulty LAN cards and network switches, viruses and spyware attacks, misconfigured firewall, security issues, DNS/DHCP problems, proxy server’s settings and overloading of the network servers with the number of software applications.
The problems in the Local Area Network can be aroused by a number of reasons as mention above. Being a LAN/Network administrator it’s your responsibility that you are well aware of your LAN infrastructure, network hardware, software, user access rights and preferences and the major configurations of the network. The best practice is to make inventory of all the resources of your LAN such as number of workstations, software installed and network hardware.

Following section provides the useful tips in diagnosing and troubleshooting the most common problems in your LAN. Whenever you face connectivity issues, security issues and performance issues the following tips are helpful in diagnosing troubleshooting the problems.
Connectivity Issues
• First thing to check it to make sure that you have the same class IP address and the associated subnet mask in all the computers in your LAN.
• Make sure that you have provided the accurate gateway address on all the computers.
• Ensure that all the network cables are tightly plugged at both ends i.e. one end in the Hub/Switch and one in the LAN card.
• Make sure that the lights on the Hub/Switch and LAN card are ON and working.
• If you are behind a proxy server and facing internet connectivity issues, make sure that you have provided the accurate proxy server’s settings at the client computers.

• Check your firewall settings and make sure that the firewall is not blocking the incoming and outgoing traffic.
• Use the PING command at the common prompt to verify the connectivity with the other computer.
Example
At command prompt
Ping 100.100.100.1 and press enter (100.100.100.1 is the IP address of the other computer)
• If the connectivity issue is with the particular computer, reinstall the driver of the NIC adapter and if the problem is still there then change the NIC adapter and reconfigure it.
• If the connectivity problem still not resolved then check the network cable from computer to HUB/Switch
Security Issues
Security issues are more likely to occur in the LAN if no proper security mechanism, policies, antivirus programs and security methods have been implemented.
• Install up-to-dated antivirus and anti spyware program and regularly scan your network server all the computers in the network.
• In the proxy server block notorious applications that cause security issues in the network and define specific internet access rules for the users.
• Use strong passwords, encryption methods and limit the access to the network resources.
• Enable logging on all the network computers and server machine.
• Implement security policies.
• Update your operating system and install latest services packs and security patches.
• Clean computer’s registry with the excellent Windows registry cleaner software. An optimized an error free registry is required for the smooth functioning of the computer.
• Implement firewall on the gateway computer and it will save your computer from the unauthorized internal and external access.
The above tips will definitely help you out in resolving the security related issues in your LAN.
Performance Issues
The performance issues in the network occurs with the heavily installed applications, Windows registry errors, antivirus and anti spyware free systems, low or faulty hardware, low physical memory, unnecessary network shortcuts, simultaneous access to the server for the same resources and in the unmanaged network environment.
• Dividing the network in the subnets is helpful in load balancing and improving the performance.
• Remove unnecessary network shortcuts and it will increase the network browsing speed.
• Clear cookies, browser’s history and other temporary files.
• Increase the physical memory (RAM)
• Uninstall any unnecessary software applications from computers.
• Separately configure the proxy server, File server, Print server and Gateway computer to put the minimum load on each server.
• Install the LAN cards that support 10/100 Mbps speed and use Switch instead of Hub in the LAN.
opefully the above mentioned tips are helpful in resolving the most common connectivity, security and performance related issues in

Network troubleshooting means recognizing, diagnosing and isolating the problems in a computer network. It’s the primary responsibility of the network administrators to maintain the computer network, fault management, network security, monitoring, resources allocation and maintaining the performance. There are a number of free built-in utilities in the Windows based operating systems and these utilities are used to diagnose and fix the problem such as “PING”, which is a built-in utility in the TCP/IP protocols stacks. The other useful utilities are HOSTNAME, IPCONFIG, NBTSTAT, NSLOOKUP, TRACERT and NETSTAT.
Sometimes the problems in a network are complicated and can’t easily be diagnosed. So in this situation there must be a good troubleshooting and diagnostic tool to solve the problem. Following list provides some of the best LAN/WAN troubleshooting and diagnostic tools.

LAN Troubleshooting Software
Network Analyzer
This tool is provided for free by the Agilent Technologies. The standard edition of this software provides the full analysis of the IP and IPX traffic on the number of Window based platforms with standard LAN cards.

Network Troubleshooting Analyzer 6.3
It is an advanced packet analysis and sniffing tool with the protocol decodes capabilities for TCP/IP, SMTP, HTTP, TELNET and FT. It captures and analyzes all the traffic transport over the Ethernet and WLAN networks. This software also includes the real time packet capturing, reconstructing TCP/IP sessions, capture POP3 and SMTP emails, trace TCP/IP connection states, monitor bandwidth usage and supports multiple monitors, Telnet servers and wireless infrastructure.
GFI LAN Guard/Network Security Scanner
GFI LAN Guard is an award winning tool that provides multiple solutions to troubleshot, scan detect and handle the security vulnerabilities in your computer network. The three basic features of this software are the vulnerability management, patch management and detecting the security vulnerabilities. GFI LAN Guard helps the IT administrators to secure their networks more efficiently.
Network Packet Analyzer
Network Packet Analyzer is an advanced network monitoring, analyzing, management and reporting tool for the Windows based network. It analyzes and monitors the traffic over the Ethernet and WLAN. Its advanced application analysis modules allow you to log the communication applications such http traffic, instant messages, emails and DNS queries.



Easy Network Service Monitor
This software is developed by Javvin Company and the main features of this software are the application monitoring, fault management, network management, network performance monitoring and reporting.
Adventnet Simulation Toolkit
Adventnet Simulation toolkit includes agent simulator and network simulator for testing and managing the network applications. This tool enables simulations of TFTP, FTP, SNMP and IOS devices.
Netstat Agent
Netstat Agent is a powerful tool that is used for monitoring the internet connections. It displays and monitors all the TCP and UDP connections and it also displays the country information of the remote IP, and open computer ports. Netstat is a set of commands like ping, ipconfig, route, tracert, arp and netstat.
Active Network Monitor
Active Network Monitor is used to monitor the performance of the computer in a network. It can be installed and run under Windows XP, 2000 Professional, NT and Windows ME computers. This tool also provides the feature of storing and comparing the data.
Cisco CDP Monitor
Cisco CDP monitor is an efficient computer network troubleshooting, monitoring and diagnostic tool and is very useful for the network administrators.
Network Troubleshooting Software
There can be different sorts of problems that can arose due to network malfunction in various hardware and software components of a network. Networks can be of different types. From home to corporate Networks, each network type has its own errors and remedies. A simple Network troubleshooting starts from pinging your nearest IP address in your subnet. You should try to ping local host from command prompt. The address for local host is 127.0.0.1 and then tries to ping your own IP Address. If both loopback adapter and Network interface return true (send replies) then assume your own physical pc is ok.

To check the connectivity of other computer(s), try to ping them and find out about their connectivity. There can be many methods and software techniques to resolve network issues.
You can check your network card’s hardware status to find out its connectivity. There are certain permissions checking techniques that can be used for network diagnostics. “Netsh” command in windows offers many measures to locate problems in Networks.
To resolve connectivity issues, you must check the gateway and DNS settings. In advanced settings, you can also set the WINS server, which stands for Windows Internet Naming Server.

SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) is a valuable tool for Network Diagnostics through SNMP Strings. It can not only check the status of each node.
You can not only check status of each connected node but can set certain triggers and alarms against specific actions or lost connectivity in the network.
Besides SNMP, in a Domain Environment, you can use windows OS own commands to check for Network errors. First you must install afminpak.msi on Start>run and then use its commands liker “dcdiag” or “netdiag” to chweck for connectivity and validity of service operations.
Active Directory Administrative Management (ADAM) can also be used to detect and diagnose the problems ion Active Directory Structure.
In case of a broadband connection, you must first verify the settings provided by Service Provider and check them against your own settings. Then verify the physical connectivity between both ends.
Most of the times, the errors are in drop line also known as local loop. Sometimes there are hardware errors in Modem or Router which must be addressed by a physical replacement of equipment.
All the Network Management Software can detect errors in Network and help to locate the faulty node in Network which will in turn facilitate greatly in Network troubleshooting.

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