LAN parties

[Too-DAMN-Much]

hey guys, i'm going to be hosting my very first LAN party today on my new network-switch/hub (i dunno the difference but the guy at the store told me a switch would provide lower latency for games and such so i bought that)
and i must confess i've not much of a clue what to do once the computers are actually hooked up to the dang thing, so could anyone walk me through the setup procedure for a LAN (temporary) for 2-3 computers running both XP and ME, as far as i know only one runs ME, but i could be wrong.

thnx so much

[bgesley]

Shouldn't you have thought of this before you planned the party and bought the switch?

So basically you don't know how to set up a LAN?

I think windows can tell you how to do it.
http://www.tweak3d.net/articles/network/
http://www.tweak3d.net/articles/howtolanparty/

[Too-DAMN-Much]

reading your articles....
btw me and one of my friends have tried multiple methods to get our comps hooked up on a LAN over the last week - cat 5 ethernet cable strung between the two network cards, parrallel cable between both comps, and now this, but yeah i basically just need help configuring the two computers to work together

[Too-DAMN-Much]

so as i understand it, basically i just need to :
1. assign the other computers an ip address as mine will be the host/server and providing the internet connection
2. check for/install a. client for microsoft networks b. TCI/IP protocol (obviously) c. IPX protocol

correct?

[mark]

IIRC, hubs are supposed to be better, but i dont know why...

[EazMan]

actually switches are better, and its because they prevent data crashes

and yes the steps you said are right although i would have recommended you buy a router with a built in switch to share the internet connection

[Psythik]

Well all I did was connect my computers to the router and XP (SP2) did the rest.

[Atmo]

Oh man...where do i start?

Ok, assuming you dont have a router...

For 2 computers, you dont need a hub or a switch, a crossover cable will do fine. Use the system with XP as the host, run the network configuration wizard on it first, then on the other pc's.

For 3 or more computers, you could whack an extra network card (one for each additional pc) in the host pc, and run a crossover cable to each of the other pc's. Or you could buy a switch, which is the better option in my opinion, especially if you need to connect to more than 3 pc's. Also, you dont need to use crossover cables with a switch.

If you have a router, use that instead. If it's only a 4 port router you might need to use a switch/hub as well if you need to connect more than 4 pc's.

As for the hub vs switch argument, they're both work. A switch is better in some situations.

What's the difference between Hub and Switch?

Inside the hub, all ports are connected to others. The network via hub connects all stations together, sharing the same path with much possibility of collision. It means that when 5 PCs connected to a 100Mbps hub, these 5 PC will share the 100Mbps and each PC could obtain 20Mbps bandwidth. Also, when one port in a hub receives a data frame, it will copy this frame to all ports in that hub. The features will cause serious collision when the traffic increases.

Inside the switch, the ports are connected to each other only when addressed. The network via switch connects stations only when they access each other. Each port on a 100Mbps switch has dedicated 100Mbps bandwidth. A switch will learn the attached PC's MAC address. When receiving a data frame, it will check MAC table. If the switch finds the MAC address in the table, it will transfer the data directly to that port instead of copy to all ports. That's why there is seldom collision in a switch.

So basically, in a network where there's a lot of data being shifted around via several pc's, a switch is definately better. For a home network with only a couple of pc's, for gaming or sharing an internet connection, a hub will suffice. But, switches dont cost that much more than a hub nowdays, so if you're going to buy something, get a switch. If you happen to host a lan party with more than a few pc's and there's a lot of leeching going on, a switch will definately be better.

[mark]

i am pwnt
ego sum pwnt
je suis pwn
ich bin pwn
127.0.0.1 == pwnt

[S-uper_T-oast]

Originally posted by nobbert

je suis pwn

oui

[Chebyrator]

LAN parties are fun, just make sure also those 2 things

Everyone got a game ALREADY installed

They all have different CDs or code, or whatever, because some game won't allow same cd keys on lan

but then again, only some