Windows 95, 98, and ME

Overview

If you're installing your first home network but already have a broadband Internet connection, the computer connected to your broadband cable or DSL modem is already configured to connect to the Internet. To do so, it had to be configured for certain parameters, according to the requirements of your Internet Service Provider (ISP). These parameters were (hopefully!) given to you in a small booklet or piece of paper. On the other hand, if someone else installed your broadband Internet connection for you, the configuration may never have been written down.

The first parameter is 'big picture:' Are your configuration parameters provided dynamically, from your ISP's remote DHCP server, or are they static? Static means that the several parameters have specific, unchanging values that must be entered manually.

If the answer is 'dynamically,' there's the whole answer, and nothing more need be looked for. (It's very easy to use DHCP, and almost all modern Internet connections do.) If the answer is 'static,' you'll need to find the values for your

• IP address

• Subnet mask

• Default gateway

• DNS server address or (more likely) your 2 or 3 DNS server addresses

You can, of course, call your ISP and ask for them again. On the other hand, if your agreement requires that you pay extra for each additional computer in the house, doing so is an invitation for them to hike your monthly bill. It's possible to determine what your configuration is by looking at configuration screens on the computer that is currently connected to your broadband modem, and that's what this appendix is about. Displaying these screens is a different procedure in Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows 98, so I'll explain it separately for all three.

Once you obtain these configuration values, they need to be entered into the configuration screen of your router appliance or wireless residential gateway, as I explain in Chapter 9.