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How to Share DSL Connection in a Gigabit Home Network?
I am planning to connect three of my home computers together. So far, I
have got a DSL modem (from the ISP), and a LinkSys Gigabit switch (EG008W). And I am planning to get a hardware firewall sometime soon. But when I read the manual of the gigabit switch, I realize that it is not a router, and it doesn't do DHCP. This means I probably will have "some problem" to share an internet connection among my computers. According to my friend, I am supposed to be able to get around with this problem by assigning a static IP address to each computer in my home network. But I am trying to get away from doing this. According to the box-art of the gigabit switch, I am supposed to use a router between the DSL modem and the gigabit switch. I guess I should look for a firewall/router that can do DHCP (I have already decided to get a hardware firewall anyway; I may as well get one that can also serve as a router). And all the computers will be connecting to the gigabit switch instead of connecting to the router. This "seems" to be the way to go. My question is: - Will the use of a router work in the way that I mentioned above? This is in the sense that all the computers in my home network will be able to share the DSL connection at the same time, and that I don't need to assign a static IP address to each of time. Here, I am assuming that the router has firewall and DHCP functionality. Thanks in advance for any info or advice. Jay Chan |
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You need to buy a Linksys BEFSR41 4-Port Router, which is probably the most
sold router for home use in the world, and one of the most reliable. I have installed many of them successfully. -- DaveW wrote in message oups.com... I am planning to connect three of my home computers together. So far, I have got a DSL modem (from the ISP), and a LinkSys Gigabit switch (EG008W). And I am planning to get a hardware firewall sometime soon. But when I read the manual of the gigabit switch, I realize that it is not a router, and it doesn't do DHCP. This means I probably will have "some problem" to share an internet connection among my computers. According to my friend, I am supposed to be able to get around with this problem by assigning a static IP address to each computer in my home network. But I am trying to get away from doing this. According to the box-art of the gigabit switch, I am supposed to use a router between the DSL modem and the gigabit switch. I guess I should look for a firewall/router that can do DHCP (I have already decided to get a hardware firewall anyway; I may as well get one that can also serve as a router). And all the computers will be connecting to the gigabit switch instead of connecting to the router. This "seems" to be the way to go. My question is: - Will the use of a router work in the way that I mentioned above? This is in the sense that all the computers in my home network will be able to share the DSL connection at the same time, and that I don't need to assign a static IP address to each of time. Here, I am assuming that the router has firewall and DHCP functionality. Thanks in advance for any info or advice. Jay Chan |
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A couple of router features you may wany to investigate a
1. NAT or Network Address Translation 2. Port Forwarding A router should provide these two features. |
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On Thu, 16 Dec 2004 05:14:07 -0800, jaykchan wrote:
I am planning to connect three of my home computers together. So far, I have got a DSL modem (from the ISP), and a LinkSys Gigabit switch (EG008W). And I am planning to get a hardware firewall sometime soon. But when I read the manual of the gigabit switch, I realize that it is not a router, and it doesn't do DHCP. This means I probably will have "some problem" to share an internet connection among my computers. According to my friend, I am supposed to be able to get around with this problem by assigning a static IP address to each computer in my home network. But I am trying to get away from doing this. According to the box-art of the gigabit switch, I am supposed to use a router between the DSL modem and the gigabit switch. I guess I should look for a firewall/router that can do DHCP (I have already decided to get a hardware firewall anyway; I may as well get one that can also serve as a router). And all the computers will be connecting to the gigabit switch instead of connecting to the router. This "seems" to be the way to go. My question is: - Will the use of a router work in the way that I mentioned above? This is in the sense that all the computers in my home network will be able to share the DSL connection at the same time, and that I don't need to assign a static IP address to each of time. Here, I am assuming that the router has firewall and DHCP functionality. Thanks in advance for any info or advice. Jay Chan Any router will have a DHCP server, all you to do is hook up the router to the DSL modem and to your switch, hook your PCs to the switch and enable the DHCP server on the router (home routers all use a browser based configuration tool, you point your brouser to 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 depending on router brand and the rest will be self explanatory). |
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Thanks everyone who has replied.
Now, all I need is a low cost few port router that has DHCP and "good enough" firewall functionality (NAT, stateful packet inspection, port forwarding), and I will be all set. I don't recall seeing extra network port in my Westell DSL modem that the ISP has provided. I believe it only has just enough ports for connecting to the wall outlet and to one PC. I will double-check when I get back home. If I find that it has extra network port, I will use it for now until I find a good router that has firewall functionality. Thanks again. Jay Chan |
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wrote:
Thanks everyone who has replied. Now, all I need is a low cost few port router that has DHCP and "good enough" firewall functionality (NAT, stateful packet inspection, port forwarding), and I will be all set. I don't recall seeing extra network port in my Westell DSL modem that the ISP has provided. I believe it only has just enough ports for connecting to the wall outlet and to one PC. I will double-check when I get back home. If I find that it has extra network port, I will use it for now until I find a good router that has firewall functionality. Thanks again. Jay Chan The typical Westell that is being supplied by ISPs has both an ethernet and a USB port -- either of which can be used for connecting but not both together. The ethernet port should have router functionality unless the ISP has had it disabled on those modems Westell manufactured for it. The settings needed for router functions should be buried in the "expert mode" "configuration" area. Once that is set up all that should be needed is a hub or switch. There is a good bit of information at http://www.dslreports.com concerning the various sorts of Westell modems currently in use. -- John McGaw [Knoxville, TN, USA] http://johnmcgaw.com |
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The typical Westell that is being supplied by ISPs has
both an ethernet and a USB port -- either of which can be used for connecting but not both together. Yes, mine is like that. It has one ethernet port and one USB port. The ethernet port should have router functionality unless the ISP has had it disabled on those modems Westell manufactured for it. The settings needed for router functions should be buried in the "expert mode" "configuration" area. Once that is set up all that should be needed is a hub or switch. I was not aware that the ethernet port is a part of a built-in router. I will look it up when I get home and try to locate the "expert mode" to see if I can find DHCP functionality there. I will also check to see if it can serve as a firewall. Thanks for the tip. Jay Chan |
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