Microsoft Windows XP Networking Inside Out

Part 2: Internet Networking

General Tab

The General tab, shown in Figure 4-2, gives you standard information about the modem and tells you whether or not the modem is working properly. You can access the Modem Troubleshooter if you are having problems by clicking the Troubleshoot button. If you are having problems with the modem, note that you can open the Device Usage list and disable the device without removing it from your computer. This option can come in handy during the troubleshooting process.

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Figure 4-2. The General tab provides standard information about the modem.

Modem Tab

The Modem tab, shown in Figure 4-3, has three configuration options:

●Speaker Volume. You can manage the modem speaker’s connection volume by adjusting the slider bar. This will let you hear (or not hear) your modem as it dials and negotiates the connection. Once the negotiation is established, the modem will be silent regardless of the volume level.

●Maximum Port Speed. The port speed determines how fast programs can send data to the modem, not how fast the modem sends data to another modem. In other words, this setting affects how fast the internal transfer of data from programs to the modem occurs. The default setting configured during installation is 115200, which is fast enough for most programs.

●Dial Control. This option simply tells the modem to wait for a dial tone before dialing occurs. This setting should remain enabled unless your modem is having problems recognizing a dial tone or if you are trying to connect in a location with dial tone problems.

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Figure 4-3. Use the Modem tab to adjust speaker volume, port speed, and dial control, if needed.

Diagnostics Tab

The Diagnostics tab provides you with a place to run a series of query commands to determine if the modem is working properly. Just click the Query Modem button, and you can view a log file that points the way to any problems the modem might have understanding common commands.

Advanced Tab

The Advanced tab provides you with a dialog box where additional initialization commands can be entered. If you refer to your modem documentation, you might find that the addition of some initialization commands can help resolve particular problems the modem is having. Again, check your documentation for details, and do not add any commands if everything is working the way that it should.

Also on this tab, you have the option of accessing Additional Port Settings or Change Default Preferences, both of which can be useful in a few circumstances. If you click the Advanced Port Settings button, you see the Advanced Settings for the modem port, as shown in Figure 4-4 on the next page. The first in, first out (FIFO) buffer is a standard used on most serial ports’ universal asynchronous receiver-transmitter (UART) chipsets. FIFO buffers allow the port to buffer data traveling to and from the modem to manage data flow. Under most circumstances, both the receive and transmit buffers should be set to High, but if you are having connection problems, you can lower the settings for each buffer. Lower settings cause slower performance, but in some cases, might help to resolve connection problems.

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Figure 4-4. Reduce the receive and transmit buffer values if you are having connection problems, but lower settings will also mean slower performance.

If you click the Change Default Preferences button on the Advanced tab, you see a General and Advanced tab for the default preferences. The preferences you see are applied during setup, but you can change them to meet any specific needs you might have.

On the General tab, shown in Figure 4-5, are the call preferences and data connection preferences. The following list describes these options:

●Call Preferences. You can choose the Disconnect A Call If Idle For More Than setting if you want the modem to automatically disconnect from the Internet when there is no activity. However, many users find this setting aggravating, and it can disrupt e-mail file downloads and possibly other file downloads as well.

●Port Speed. This is the same Port Speed setting option you explored on the Modem tab. The standard speed is 115200.

●Data Protocol. The Data Protocol options are Standard EC (error correction), Forced EC, or Disabled. This setting controls how error correction is used when modems communicate with each other. Standard EC is the default and is usually all that is needed. Forced EC requires a certain error correction method called V.42 and hangs up if the standard is not used. Do not use Forced EC unless the modem you are connecting with requires it. You can also disable error correction if you are having problems connecting with your ISP, but this can make the connection unstable. Under most circumstances, the Standard EC setting should be used.

●Compression. You can enable or disable data compression, which is enabled by default. The data compression used by the modem, which is called hardware compression, is used to speed up the transfer process. Typically, you should leave the Compression setting enabled, but if you’re having trouble making or maintaining modem connections, you can disable it to try to enhance connection reliability (at the cost of somewhat slower performance).

●Flow Control. Flow control refers to the flow of data between the modem and the computer. Depending on the modem, either hardware or software (Xon/Xoff) flow control can be used, and the typical Flow Control setting

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is Hardware. Check your modem documentation for details, but this setting normally does not need to be changed.

Figure 4-5. The General tab of Default Preferences enables you to make changes to call and data connection preferences.

On the Advanced tab, shown in Figure 4-6 on the next page, you can adjust additional hardware settings for the modem if necessary. Again, the standard settings are typically all you need, but the following list explains the settings in case you need to adjust them:

●Data Bits. Data bits refers to the number of bits that are used to transmit each character of data. The modem your modem is communicating with must have the same setting, which is typically 8 for online services. Your ISP will tell you if you need to use a different value; otherwise, this value should not be changed.

●Parity. Parity refers to the type of error checking. When used, a parity bit is appended to the data, which can then be checked by the receiving modem to ensure accuracy. The computer you are communicating with must have the same setting for parity to work. For online services, None is the typical setting. Again, do not change this setting unless instructed to do so by your ISP.

●Stop Bits. A stop bit is used to tell the computer that one byte of information has been sent. The stop bit value should be set to 1 unless you are directed to set it to a different value by your ISP.

●Modulation. Modulation refers to how data is changed from digital to analog and vice versa. Typically, standard modulation is used. However, if you are having problems connecting, you can also try the Nonstandard option.

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Depending on your modem, you might have additional options: You should only attempt to use them if specifically directed to do so by your ISP.

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Figure 4-6. These settings determine how the modem handles the data stream passing through it.

Driver Tab

The Driver tab, shown in Figure 4-7, lets you update the current driver installed for the modem, and you can view data about the driver using the Driver Details option. If your modem shipped with an installation CD, you can use that CD to update the driver as well.

Figure 4-7. Use the Driver tab to update or change the current modem driver.

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Resources Tab

Under normal circumstances, Windows XP automatically assigns system resources to hardware devices, such as interrupt request (IRQ) numbers and memory port ranges. There is nothing for you to do on the Resources tab if there are no problems with resource assignments (which there rarely are). However, if a conflict exists, you can manually assign resources to try to resolve the problem.

Creating New Internet Connections

Once your modem or broadband hardware is installed and configured correctly, your next step is to create an Internet connection. To create the new connection, you simply need to use the New Connection Wizard. Normally, you’ll use your ISP’s setup CD for both broadband and dial-up connections, so it is important that you read the ISP’s documentation and perform the steps as required.

If you need to establish a dial-up or broadband connection for an existing account or if you want to use the manual approach, the New Connection Wizard can easily guide you through the process. See the following steps for details:

1Open Network Connections. From the Windows XP Start menu, choose Connect To, Show All Connections. From the Classic Start menu, choose Settings, Network Connections.

2In the task pane on the left under Network Tasks, select the Create A New Connection link.

3The New Connection Wizard appears. Click Next.

4On the Network Connection Type page of the wizard, shown in Figure 4-8 on the next page, you can choose the kind of connection that you want to create. Select the Connect To The Internet option and click Next.

5On the Getting Ready page, you can select from a list of ISPs if you do not have an account. This option opens a connection to a referral service so that you can sign up with available service providers on the Internet. If you have an installation CD, you can select the Use The CD I Got From An ISP option to run setup from the CD. Or, you can select Set Up My Connection Manually, which is the option used in this procedure. Click Next to continue.

6On the Internet Connection page, shown in Figure 4-9 on the next page, select the type of connection that you are using: dial-up, broadband that requires a user name and password, or broadband that is always on. Make your selection and click Next. Because you are most likely to use the New Connection Wizard to set up modem connections, the rest of this procedure focuses on that option.

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Figure 4-8. Select the kind of connection you want to create.

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Figure 4-9. Select the type of connection you are using and click Next.

7On the Connection Name page of the wizard, enter a name for the connection and click Next. The name should be something friendly that distinguishes the connection from other connections.

8On the Phone Number To Dial page, enter the phone number required to dial the ISP. Include all digits necessary to dial the number from your location, such as 1 plus the area code if required. Click Next.

9On the Internet Account Information page, shown in Figure 4-10, enter your user name and password, and then select the options you want to use. If you

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select the first check box, the account can be used by anyone using your computer; if you clear the check box, only you can use the connection by supplying your name and password. You can also make the connection the default connection, and you can turn on Internet Connection Firewall for the connection. See Chapter 5, “Using Internet Connection Firewall,” to learn more about Internet Connection Firewall. Make your entries and selections and click Next.

Figure 4-10. Enter your account information and click Next.

	10 On the final page of the wizard, you can choose to have a shortcut for	4
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	appears in the Network Connections folder as well as on your desktop, if
	the connection placed on your desktop. Click Finish. The new connection
	you selected that option.

What Is PPPoE?

You might have noticed the reference to Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) when you selected the type of connection that you wanted to create. PPPoE is a type of broadband Internet connection that is not always connected, but instead requires a user name and password to be sent each time the user wants to connect.

PPPoE is designed for users on a LAN (using standard Ethernet) who access the Internet over an Ethernet network through a broadband connection. In other words, Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP), which is used on the Internet, functions over Ethernet to provide Internet access to these users. With PPPoE, each user can have a different access configuration, even though they all reside on the same LAN.

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Inside Out (continued) One of the real-world applications of PPPoE, however, is the management of IP addresses. Instead of assigning each user a static IP address for an always-on connection, a dynamic IP address can be used. When the user does not use the Internet for a period of time, the connection becomes inactive, and the IP address is reassigned to another user. When the first user wants to access the Internet again, the user name and password are sent so that a new dynamic IP address can be assigned. This might cause a slight delay in the connection and can be a real problem for users who want to make a virtual private network (VPN) connection over the Internet to their home or small office network if that network uses PPPoE to connect to the Internet.

You can learn more about PPPoE by accessing RFC 2516 on the Internet. To read more about an RFC, open your Web browser and use an Internet search engine to search for the RFC number. In this case, you would search for RFC 2516.

Managing Dial-up Connections

Once you have created a dial-up connection, an icon appears in the Network Connections folder for the dial-up connection. You can further configure and manage the dialup connection by right-clicking the icon and choosing Properties. There are a number of configuration options for dial-up connections, and a few of them often cause users some difficulty and problems. This section will examine the configuration features and options that can help dial-up modem communications.

Connection Properties

Figure 4-11 shows the dialog box that appears when you double-click a dial-up connection in the Network Connections window. Although this connection window is simple, it is important to note that you can change your user name and password if necessary, and you can also make the connection private or public in terms of local user access. Figure 4-11 shows that this connection is available to all users who access this particular computer.

If you select Me Only, the connection’s user name and password will be saved and made available only when the designated user is signed on to Windows XP. Other users signing on to the computer and attempting to use the connection will each have to provide a valid user name and password. If they don’t know the designated user’s account information and don’t have their own account, they won’t be able to use the connection. However, if the designated user signs on to the computer and then leaves it unattended, anyone can sit down at the computer and access the connection. Additionally, when Me Only is selected and the user either logs off the computer or uses Fast User Switching to switch to another user, the dial-up session will automatically be disconnected.

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Figure 4-11. Use this dialog box to make a connection or to change dial-up settings.

If you select Anyone Who Uses This Computer, any user on the computer will be able to use that dial-up connection. If a user initiates a dial-up session and then logs off, Windows XP will prompt the user to determine if that user wants to disconnect the dial-up session or leave it running. If the first user leaves it running and another user subsequently logs on, and then does not disconnect the session manually when logging off, the session will be maintained and that user (and all subsequent users) will not be prompted. If, on the other hand, Fast User Switching is used to switch users, the connection is automatically maintained.

Another option is to clear the check box labeled Save This User Name And Password For The Following Users, which deactivates both of the suboptions. With this option, even the designated user will have to supply the user name and password each time a connection is desired. This way an unattended machine can’t be used by an unauthorized person to access the Internet. As with selecting Me Only, using Fast User Switching or logging off will result in dial-up sessions being disconnected.

You can configure additional properties of a dial-up connection by right-clicking the connection in Network Connections and choosing Properties. Note that you can also delete a connection, make it the default, or connect or disconnect by right-clicking the connection.

If you access the connection’s properties, you see several different tabs that you can use to further configure the Internet connection. A number of the options on the tabs are self-explanatory, but the most important configuration options are discussed next.

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