Frequently Asked Questions
Networking computers can be very frustrating, particularly when using Windows 95/98/ME. Take heart - it can be done! This FAQ covers most of the reasons that your network might not be working properly. It also answers some other, general questions that may arise from this guide.
The computers in the network can't see each other!
Before trying anything else, make sure you're not using a firewall. The incorrect use of firewalls, especially ZoneAlarm, is nearly guaranteed to cause problems. I strongly recommend that you do not run any firewall on any of the computers until your network is up and running smoothly. In addition, if Windows asks for any passwords when you boot up the computer, make sure you enter them in correctly. It's tempting to press "Enter" or "Escape" without typing in the password - which gets you into Windows more quickly - but this can cause problems with file sharing later on."The computers in the network can't see each other" is a common problem, but not very specific. Try to work out where the problem lies - can the computers ping each other? Can they see one another in Network Neighborhood? Can the client computers access the internet at all?
If pinging doesn't work, and you aren't using any firewall software, then you either have a problem with your hardware or, much more likely, your TCP/IP settings. Make sure your TCP/IP settings are exactly the same as in my guide, and that the computers have different names. You should also ensure that Windows is truly seeing your network card (or network cards, for the server) - do this by running winipcfg (Windows 95/98/ME) or ipconfig (Windows 2000/XP), as described at the end of section 4.1, and checking that Windows displays information for the correct number of network cards.
If pinging does work, but file sharing doesn't, then check that File and Printer Sharing is set up properly on each computer (see section 4). Also, make sure that the computers have different names but are in the same workgroup.
The client computers can't access the internet!
If pinging and file sharing work, but the internet doesn't, then try pinging an internet site from one of the client computers. It doesn't matter which site you choose to ping, but keep in mind that some sites don't respond to pings. Therefore it would be wise to try pinging your chosen site from the server computer first, just to make sure it responds. For example, open up an MS-DOS prompt (or Command Prompt) on the server computer and type "ping www.optushome.com.au". If it responds, do the same on a client computer.If pinging the internet site from the client computer doesn't work, check the DNS configuration of your client computer/s (section 4). If your DNS settings are right, then the software installed on the server computer to share the connection isn't working properly. Check that all of the internet sharing software's settings are correct, make sure you're not running a firewall, make sure that no other internet sharing software is installed at the same time, and remember that Microsoft Internet Connection Sharing for Windows 98 doesn't like USB ethernet adaptors. If you still can't get it to work, try a different internet sharing program - but make sure you uninstall the other one first!
If pinging the internet site from the client computer works, but you still can't access the "internet", then you probably need to look at the connection settings of your client computer's web browser. Typically this problem occurs because you have the wrong proxy settings in your browser. To test this, tell your browser to connect to the internet directly (ie don't use a proxy), and then quit and restart your browser. If that fixes the problem, then you can now enter the correct proxy settings in the browser, or just leave it blank. If it doesn't fix the problem, then the software installed on the server computer to share the connection isn't working properly - see the previous paragraph.
The client computer(s) can't access "www" (or e-mail, or "news" etc) but the server can!
Your "intranet domain name" (see section 4) is not set up properly on the client computer(s).
Since I installed the software to share my connection, my Telstra connection is dropping out every few minutes. Why?
Telstra's computers send out a so-called "heartbeat" network signal every few minutes that attempts to open a connection on your server computer; if the heartbeat can't open this connection then Telstra assumes that you've disconnected from the internet and shuts down your connection. Some software can interfere with this heartbeat, causing dropouts. See section 7 for more information.
Do I need to install the Telstra (or Optus) software on the client computer(s)?
No. The Optus software doesn't even need to be installed on the server computer, let alone the client(s). The Telstra software only needs to be installed on the server computer. However, there's a 3rd-party Telstra login client called BPALogin that I recommend to all users of Telstra cable - it's reputed to be faster, more reliable, use less memory and so on, and works much better with internet sharing software.
Can computers running different operating systems share a connection?
Absolutely! TCP/IP networking (which is all that internet sharing needs) is supported by every network-ready operating system, including all versions of Windows, Linux, Macintosh OS, BeOS, you name it.
What about Windows NT?
For the purposes of home networking, Windows NT is virtually identical to Windows 95. Thus, to set it up as the server computer, follow the Windows 95 server instructions, and to set it up as a client computer, follow the Windows 95 client instructions.
When using Windows 2000/XP and Windows 95/98/ME in the same network, I'm having trouble sharing files - when I click on the Windows 2000/XP's computer name, it asks for a password.
Find out the user name of the Windows 95/98/ME computer. If you have multiple users on the computer, you should already know this (it's the name you use to log in). Otherwise, right-click on "My Computer" and choose "Properties", look at where it says "Licensed to:" - that's the user name for that computer. Now on the Windows 2000/XP computer you need to create a user of that name, and give that user access to the shared file(s). That user must have a password, which then needs to be entered into Windows 95/98/ME when accessing the shared folder.
If I don't take a tea break at section 6, will that really have an effect on my network?
You'd better believe it!
This page was very helpful, how can I thank you?
or...This page needs work, here's some constructive criticism
Email me! I always reply to my emails, so if I don't reply to yours, I either lost the email or I'm away from my computer - it might be worth trying again.