Give my creation life!

After spending the last two nights over at my parents’ house trying different things to enhance their networking situation, I finally succeeded in getting everything working tonight! It’s all done! I’ve proven that this certain hardware setup will give the results everyone wants! No one loses anything! Several people gain functionality they didn’t have before! Scott wins!

I can’t even begin to tell you how relieved I am that this final attempt worked. The last two nights have ended in total failure, and it felt so good to finally have things work the way I knew they should. If you care about the details, keep reading, otherwise, just bask in the glow of victory with me!

Okay, so here’s the situation: My parents have a single static IP from the DSL company. Dad’s computer has an internal DSL modem (single phone port) and an ethernet card which he is using to share the internet connection to Ryan and Molli’s computer via a really long crossover cable slung across the ceiling of the living room.

The challenge was to take this situation and somehow add Sean’s computer in the basement to the network so that he could access the internet without taking Ryan and Molli off Dad’s local network, which they need to print.

Possible solutions that were being considered were:

1) Introducing a hub into the network between Dad’s computer and Ryan’s to allow connecting Sean’s computer via a long ethernet cable, strung through a hole in the floor in the broom closet. Pros: Should be simple, as it’s just plugging into the existing network. Doesn’t require any changes to Dad’s or Ryan’s computers. Cons: Another ugly cable strung around the house, and no guarantees that this will work without messing up Ryan and Molli’s setup. Cannot add other computers into the network. Requires Dad’s computer to be on for anyone else to use internet.

2) Introducing a wi-fi router into the network between Dad’s computer and Ryan’s to allow Sean to connect wirelessly to the network. Pros: No ugly cables, allows future potential computers to connect to network. Doesn’t require any changes to Dad’s or Ryan’s computers. Cons: By using the router, Ryan and Molli are removed from Dad’s local network, and cannot print. Requires Dad’s computer to be on for anyone else to use internet.

3) Getting an external DSL modem, and rerouting the entire network so the phone line goes into the external DSL modem, which runs an ethernet cable to the wi-fi router, which runs ethernet cables to Dad’s and Ryan’s computers, and lets Sean connect wirelessly. Pros: Much cleaner network, no need for windows connection sharing, no need for Dad’s computer to be on for other people to use the internet. Allows future potential computers to connect to network. Everyone stays on the same local network, and can print. Cons: Requires the purchase of an external modem.

Interested in maintaining the status quo and not disturbing Dad’s computer, as well as avoiding the purchase of an external DSL modem, we tried solution number two first. (number one was briefly considered, and then dismissed as a worst-case scenario). Sean bought a wi-fi router and wi-fi card, and on Monday night, we tried to set it up. What should have been a ten-minute setup process took a half-hour, and never worked. We never found out why, and we nearly didn’t get things working the old way again. So when I went home Monday night, I was frustrated, but we thought we’d found the reason it didn’t work.

Tuesday night, I came back and we tried again, with similar results. Just as frustrated, I went home, and we decided I would return tonight with my external DSL modem and my wi-fi router, so we could test with hardware we knew worked, so we could move on to solution three.

It took a couple hours and a few false alarms, but it finally worked. Using an external DSL modem and a netgear wi-fi router, all three computers got online using DHCP on the local network, and we declared success. Then I put everything back the way it was, and now Dad’s computer and Ryan’s computer are back on the internet with the original solution. Sean has already bought the same netgear router I have from amazon.com, and is returning his D-Link router to Fry’s (not sure if it didn’t work, or if it was just a configuration problem, but it sucks anyways, so no one cares), and finally, he’s going to start bidding on an e-bay auction for the cisco external DSL modem.

So, in a couple weeks once all the parts are here, we’ll do it all over again (hopefully faster this time), and everyone will be much happier in the long run.