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whatever
16-07-2003, 11:33
i currently got my cable modem connected to my pc using usb. the connection is shared and the other pc's can use it fine. never had a problem with it apart from 15 mins downtime one night at about 3am when they were doing something to the network.

BUT

this means i lose the use of one of my usb ports and my pc has to be powered for the other machines to connect which is a pain in the arse.

SO

my network runs through a 100mb switch with plenty spare ports and the modem has an ethernet connection on it. can i connect the modem directly to the switch or will i have to shell out for a router?

downquark1
16-07-2003, 11:39
A router would be easier --- but if you switch the host PC on first wouldn't the modem attach to that and the pc can share the connection over the network? Anyone?

I may be confused with STBs

whatever
16-07-2003, 11:45
wireless router is out the question 'cos i like me counterstrike and i've seen what they do to latency. was considering a hybrid one though - some cat5 connections and wireless for laptops (which i'm not going to be playing games on). however, i am a tight git and don't want to shell out for a router if i can just bang me modem into me switch and set it as the default gateway or something.......

whatever
16-07-2003, 11:46
btw, i reckon that's the quickest reply i ever got on a tech forum :D

nice one.....

bigboab5
16-07-2003, 15:06
Hi there,

Maybe I am misunderstanding this thread, BUT A company called priceless computing ( www.pless.co.uk ) have a deal going now for 2 x Nic's and some cable. Seems the cheapest I have seen in ages. Worth a look.

Bigboab5

whatever
16-07-2003, 15:21
erm...

cheers for the advert but i got plenty cable, plugs and cards already thanks.

i just want to know if it is possible to connect my modem to my switch rather than to a host machine (with 2 network cards) which needs to be powered for the other machines on my network to connect.

duncant403
16-07-2003, 16:01
Originally posted by whatever
erm...

cheers for the advert but i got plenty cable, plugs and cards already thanks.

i just want to know if it is possible to connect my modem to my switch rather than to a host machine (with 2 network cards) which needs to be powered for the other machines on my network to connect.

You probably could - if you only want to use one of the machines at a time. Otherwise, as the modem only gives out a single IP address, all the machines you plug into the switch will get the same IP address - and they won't work like that. You need either a router, or connection sharing on a host machine, to supply the other machines with local IP addresses.

whatever
16-07-2003, 17:50
yeah this is the problem i see too. i don't reckon the modem will be able to route traffic to the correct machine on the local network.

if anyone here uses a router can you let me know whether the ip's on your machines are 192.168.x.x or 80.5.x.x

also, if they are in the 192.168.x.x range, are they are assigned automatically by the router or can you set them yourself?

thanks for replies so far :)

Xaccers
16-07-2003, 17:58
Routers will NAT (network address translation)
All your PC's behind the router will be hiding behind a single IP address (80.* given to you by NTL's DHCP servers)
Most CM routers have built in DHCP servers, and you can set the scope (range of IP addresses to give out to the PCs)
For instance, most routers I've seen by default use 192.168.0.x
On my network I've changed this to 192.168.1.x as my laptop is configured for ICS so the NIC is set to 192.168.0.1 (I connect to the router via my wireless NIC)

whatever
16-07-2003, 22:18
cool

thanks for all advice - looks like i'll be getting me wallet out then...

anyone recommend a good, cheap cm router which will also work over adsl (moving house soon) with built-in dhcp and firewall and wireless connection as well as at least 1 rj45?

Tricky
16-07-2003, 23:02
If you're going ADSL you'll need an ASDL modem also bundled in that package, I suggest you wait till the move then purchase an all in one. Otherwise you'll need to by a modem and a router.

I cannot recommend an all in one, but I've never had any issues with my routers (Belkin, Linksys & Treadnet)

Lord Nikon
17-07-2003, 01:09
if you go ADSL then an MRI router with onboard 4 port hub from scan.co.uk, otherwise Linksys

the MRI doesn't support upnp but they are simple to set up & use.

whatever
17-07-2003, 01:33
i have found something called a "broadband router" which i could use in place of my switch. it has no built in modem so i can use my existing modem connected directly to it. as a bonus it has a built-in print server so i will be able to connect and print from any machine without having to have another machine powered :D

if i have to get adsl when i move i can just attach an adsl modem instead of the cable modem which seems pretty cool but i would need one with an rj45 connector and all the isp's i've checked use usb modems.

does anyone know if you can get adsl modems with an rj45 connection or even better, any isp's which supply them with the connection?

philip.j.fry
17-07-2003, 02:05
Originally posted by whatever

does anyone know if you can get adsl modems with an rj45 connection or even better, any isp's which supply them with the connection?

Have a look on ebay, I always find that's a good start these days. One thing to be aware of is that the router you buy needs to support PPPoATM, this might be incorrect but when I moved house and was looking at ADSL I found out that the router (Belkin) that I had wouldn't work. Like I said though, this was a while ago so things could have changed.

El Diablo
17-07-2003, 02:16
Originally posted by whatever
does anyone know if you can get adsl modems with an rj45 connection or even better, any isp's which supply them with the connection? You'd probably do best to get an ADSL wires only package and purchase a decent wireless ADSL router seperately... that way, you'll get the best of both worlds... you can pick them up for a little over a ton...:D

MovedGoalPosts
17-07-2003, 10:45
Some of these posts will have been answered by the more "tech" bods.

Originally posted by whatever
my network runs through a 100mb switch with plenty spare ports and the modem has an ethernet connection on it. can i connect the modem directly to the switch or will i have to shell out for a router?

I tried connecting my STB to a switch with the network behind it. It didn't work, and I'd expect the ntl cable modem instead of STB to fall over too. ntl's connection expects to see a single MAC address of the network cards (or USB adaptor) of the computer connected to the STB. If you use a switch, without a router, all the computers connected to the STB / modem send their MAC address through the switch to the STB / modem. A router however intercepts the MAC addresses, and only sends one MAC address to the STB / modem. the single MAC address sent the the modem is the one you must have registered with ntl (frequently yo can set a router to "spoof" the MAC of your first registered computer).


Originally posted by whatever
does anyone know if you can get adsl modems with an rj45 connection or even better, any isp's which supply them with the connection?

Definitely yes. My office's ADSL through Clara was supplied with an ADSL BT modem which only has RJ45 connections. www.clara.net can offer "engineer install" ADSL 512 and 1Mpbs now (as a business use - not sure about residential) which means they supply the modem as part of your monthly fee.

whatever
17-07-2003, 12:29
found a pretty sweet router which seems to do everything i want.

it isn't advertised as a cm or adsl router instead it has a "10/100BASE-T Ethernet RJ-45 port to connect to any broadband modem, such as DSL or cable" so i reckon i should be ok to use it with either if the need arises.

it doesn't mention anything about PPPoA though (just PPPoE) but i'm thinking this is because the adsl modem connected to the router will take care of the PPPoA side of things?

anyone confirm this for me?

router specs are here: http://secure.addonsonline.co.uk/addon/code/products.asp?recid=666&subcatid=52

whatever
17-07-2003, 12:41
this one is slightly cheaper and has 5x faster wireless access :) but no print server :(

http://secure.addonsonline.co.uk/addon/code/products.asp?recid=675&subcatid=52

again it says it will work with cable and adsl but no mention of PPPoA. can anyone confirm that these routers will work with both adsl and cable connections?