Getting Your Network Information Together

As part of the installation procedure, you are asked details about your network connection (assuming you're going to run the computer in question on a local area network; if it's not, just skip over this part).

You must supply the following information:

• Is the computer going to join a domain or a workgroup? You can answer Workgroup if you don't know and later change to a domain. Ask someone who knows. If you select the Domain option, you'll have to ask your network administrator to create a new computer account to allow you to join that domain or to edit your existing account to reflect the new computer name.

  To learn more information about networking settings, p. 598, and "Adding Network Clients, Services, and Protocols," p. 592.

  
  

  NOTE

  A computer account is a specific type of account that a Windows NT, Windows 2000 Server, or .NET Server administrator makes to allow a given computer to join the domain. In a domain, both computers and users have accounts on the server. A domain client is a system that is a member of a centrally controlled and secured network environment.

  
  

• Are you already part of a network? If so, collect the following information, scribble it down on a piece of paper, and keep the paper handy:

  Name of your computer

  Name of the workgroup or domain

  IP address (if your network doesn't have a DHCP server)