Setting up a network at home or Local Area Network (LAN) has many advantages. One can share files, internet connection, printers, other peripherals, etc. There should be two or more computers in the household in order to have a network. There are 2 types of network that can be used at home, a wired network or a wireless network. Basically, the difference between the two is that the wired network uses cat5 cables and the wireless network uses radio frequency to connect to each other. For wired network, there should be a LAN port in your computers, CAT5 cables and a router or a hub. On the other hand, to have a wireless network, your computer should have a wireless PCI card or a USB wireless receiver and you should have a wireless router. You can learn how to network home computers by following these steps.
Wired network using a router
- Through the LAN port, connect one computer to the router using CAT5 cable.
- Using the internet port, connect the Cable/DSL modem to the router with a CAT5 cable.
- To access the router, open the web browser, and then type the IP address, username and password of the router as specified in the user’s manual.
- Follow the directions in the user’s manual of the router you are using. Some routers have software that will assist you in setting up the network.
- Identify the type of internet connection you have, for example Cable internet, PPPoe, etc.
- Then refer to the user’s manual if there are other data required. For example in PPPoe, the user name and the password from your Internet Service Provider (ISP) are needed.
- When the router indicates that it is connected to your ISP, you can now use the internet in your computer.
- You can now connect the other computers to the router with cat5 cables through the LAN port.
- Go to My Network places then set up the network.
Wireless network using a wireless router
- Through the internet port, connect the Cable/DSL modem to the router using CAT5 cable.
- Make sure the wireless receiver of your computer is enabled to establish connection to the router.
- To access the router, open the web browser, and then type the IP address, username and password of the router as specified in the user’s manual.
- Follow the directions in the user’s manual of the router you are using. Some routers have software that will assist you in setting up the network.
- Identify the type of internet connection you have, for example Cable internet, PPPoe, etc.
- Then refer to the user’s manual if there are other data needed. For example in PPPoe, the user name and the password from your Internet Service Provider (ISP) are required.
- When the router indicates that it is connected to your ISP, you can now use the internet in your computer.
- You can now connect your other computers using their wireless receiver.
- Go to My Network places then set up the network.