Microsoft Windows XP Networking Inside Out

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Conventions and

Features Used in This Book

This book uses special text and design conventions to make it easier for you to find the information you need.

Text Conventions

Convention	Meaning
Abbreviated menu commands	For your convenience, this book
	uses abbreviated menu commands.
	For example, “Choose Tools, Track
	Changes, Highlight Changes” means
	that you should click the Tools menu,
	point to Track Changes, and select the
	Highlight Changes command.
Boldface type	Boldface type is used to indicate text
	that you enter or type.
Initial Capital Letters	The first letters of the names of menus,
	dialog boxes, dialog box elements, and
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	Save As dialog box.
Italicized type	Italicized type is used to indicate
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	For example, Ctrl+Alt+Delete means
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	keys at the same time.

Design Conventions

newfeature!

This text identifies a new or significantly updated feature in this version of the software.

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Conventions and Features Used in This Book

These are the book’s signature tips. In these tips, you’ll get the straight scoop on what’s going on with the software—inside information on why a feature works the way it does. You’ll also find handy workarounds to different software problems.

tip Tips provide helpful hints, timesaving tricks, or alternative procedures related to the task being discussed.

Look for these sidebars to find solutions to common problems you might encounter. Troubleshooting sidebars appear next to related information in the chapters. You can also use the Troubleshooting Topics index at the back of the book to look up problems by topic.

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The sidebars sprinkled throughout these chapters provide ancillary information on the topic being discussed. Go to sidebars to learn more about the technology or a feature.

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Part 1

Windows XP Networking

1	Introduction to	3
	Windows XP Networking
2	Configuring TCP/IP	15
	and Other Protocols
3	Creating Network	47
	Connections

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Chapter 1

Windows
Networking	3
Concepts
Windows XP
Networking	9
Features

1: Windows XP Networking

Introduction to	Chapter 1
Windows XP
Networking

Networks have been around since the early days of computing— even before the PC appeared on the scene. After all, the importance of networking—to share information and manage a computing environment—was evident even when computers used vacuum tubes and filled an entire room. The computing world has changed drastically since then, and it continues to rapidly change and evolve as networking and computing technology continues to grow.

Microsoft designed Windows XP Professional and Windows XP Home Edition with networking in mind, although Windows XP Professional is considered the networking platform. With the tools Windows XP Professional provides, you can use it in a small network or in a network with thousands of computers. Before getting too far ahead, let’s first consider some networking background information and review all that Windows XP has to offer. If you have a limited amount of experience with networking, this chapter serves as a great primer. If you are experienced with Windows networks, this chapter serves as a review as well as a guide to Windows XP.

Windows Networking Concepts

Like any complicated process, getting your feet on solid ground from the start is always important. Networking does not have to be terribly complicated, but depending on your needs, it certainly can be. This book explores the procedures

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and complexities of networking. As a starting point, it is a good idea to get some solid ideas and definitions in your mind, which will make networking easier to understand as you move forward. The following sections explore different aspects and definitions of networking components and processes.

What Is a Network?

If you ask 10 people, “What is a network?” you are likely to get 10 different responses. After all, the simple concept of a network has a lot of implications. A technical guru might answer, “A network is a communication mechanism between two or more computers using a common protocol.” This is true; but other people might define the term network much differently:

●An office worker that uses a network might answer, “A network is a way to get information and share information.”

●A network administrator might answer, “A network is a way to centrally manage computers and users.”

●Someone in sales or human resources might answer, “A network is a way to create and maintain connections between people.”

●An Internet surfing preteen might answer, “A network is a way to play games and have fun.”

Depending on your perspective, your definition of a network might vary. After all, the true purpose of a network is to meet the needs of a given group of people, whether that network is a small home network or the Internet, the world’s largest network.

In this book, the definition of a network uses a mixture of concepts: “A network is a group of connected computers used to share information among people and manage resources and security.”

Why Is a Network Necessary?

There are three primary reasons for networking, and any additional reasons usually lead back to these three:

●Information sharing and resources. Computer networks allow the sharing of information and resources. For example, suppose you have a home network with two computers. Networking those computers together allows them to share files on a hard disk drive, an Internet connection, and even hardware, such as printers and CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drives. In larger environments, the ability to share information and resources is even more critical.

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Chapter 1: Introduction to Windows XP Networking

●Communications. With the advent of e-mail and instant messaging, a lot of network traffic usually consists of communications. In corporations, thousands of internal e-mail messages are sent each day. E-mail has become a great way to manage employees, schedule meetings, and quickly communicate with people. Instant messaging is another incredibly popular form of communication, allowing both casual chatting and online collaboration.

●Computer and user management. In larger environments, networking functions as a means of managing users, computers, and security. Network administrators can enforce uniform standards, and with Active Directory Group Policy, they can enforce all kinds of settings and computer configurations including the automatic installation or removal of software. For more information about Active Directory, see “Understanding Active Directory Domains,” page 311.

The fundamental purposes of networking are all basic, but very important. For these reasons, home and small office users find themselves at their favorite computer stores buying networking equipment, and corporate environments invest many thousands of dollars in their network infrastructure and maintenance each year.

What Is Needed for a Network?

The question of what you need for a network can be difficult to answer because a simple two-computer network needs considerably less than a network with thousands of computers. Still, there are some fundamental requirements of each network:

●Hardware. To create a network, you must have certain pieces of hardware. Computers must be outfitted with a network interface card (NIC), also called a network adapter. The NIC provides a way to connect the computer to the network, either with a cable or via a wireless connection. Depending on the type of network you are creating, you might also need a hub, which is a device to which all computers connect. You can learn more about different types of hardware in Chapter 3, “Creating Network Connections.”

tip Network hardware can be expensive, but there are also many prepackaged home networking kits that sell for under $100. If you want to set up a small wireless network, you might need to spend anywhere from $200 to $500. There are several options, so be sure to explore Chapter 3 if you are about to create a home or small office network to make sure you have considered all of the options available to you.

Chapter 1

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●Software. For one computer to communicate with the next, networking software and protocols must be configured. A protocol is essentially a language or a collection of rules that computers use to communicate with each other. The de facto standard protocol used in networks today, including the Internet, is Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/ IP), which you can learn more about in Chapter 2, “Configuring TCP/IP and Other Protocols.”

Understanding Home Networks and Workgroups

Workgroups, which are the typical configuration found in home networks and small office networks these days, consist of a small collection of computers that are connected together primarily for information and resource sharing. Workgroups generally consist of fewer than 20 computers, but this is not a strict requirement. However, Windows workgroups do have these specific characteristics:

●There is no centralized server. A server is a computer on a network dedicated to running the administrative software that controls access to the network and its resources, such as printers and disk drives. Each computer in the workgroup functions as its own unit—there is no centralized server and no centralized policies. There might be one person in charge of the workgroup (which might be you), but that person manages the workgroup on a computer-by-computer basis.

●Each user is an administrator of sorts. The user can share files and other data, and manage security based on his or her needs.

●Security is localized. Because there is no server, logon security is implemented on a computer-by-computer basis. The good news is that Windows XP provides local logon security, which makes Windows XP a better choice for workgroups than Microsoft Windows 9x or Microsoft Windows Me (Millennium Edition).

●Workgroup computers are typically located in one location. Workgroups tend to be found in one home or a small office. They are normally not distributed between offices or buildings, and there is usually no remote dialup, although remote dial-in access can be configured in Windows XP Professional.

In the following illustration of a typical workgroup (also known as a peer-to-peer network), five computers are connected to each other through a central hub.

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Workgroup, or Peer-to-Peer Network

Workstation

Workstation

Workstation

Ethernet hub

			Workstation				Workstation

1: Windows XP Networking

Chapter 1

For small groups of computers and resources, workgroups are usually easier to manage and maintain than a larger domain environment, which is discussed in the next section. They can also be less expensive because servers and server software are not needed. However, businesses might soon outgrow the workgroup model and have to turn to a Windows domain environment. With a domain comes much more power, control, and yes, complexity.

Understanding Domain Environments

The workgroup design works well for home or small office environments. However, larger environments quickly outgrow the workgroup model, primarily due to administration and security requirements. When centralized administration and security are required, Windows networks move to a domain-based model. In a domain-based network, users’ computers (sometimes called workstations or client computers) are centrally managed by one or more Windows servers. Servers are dedicated to running network services, and users do not sit and work at the servers. When a user wants to log on to the network, the user’s user name and password are verified or authenticated by a domain controller, which is a server that maintains all the user names and passwords.

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