Networking and Wi-Fi

Your wireless network, once secure, provides a great way to share files and printers throughout your home. My Network Places. You can easily set up additional subdirectories for sharing, but the more directories you share, the more you expose your drive in the event of a security breach.

Because wireless signals often travel beyond the physical confines of your home or office, you must take extra precautions to secure your network. Otherwise, any hacker on the street with a suitable radio can gain access to your network. The Tools page in the DI-624’s configuration utility allows you to change the router’s password. To secure your new Wi-Fi network, go to your wireless router’s configuration utility again by entering its IP address in your browser. Using the router documentation or built-in help, if necessary, find the option that lets you change the default password. With the DI-624, this option lives within the Tools page. Apply the change but leave the configuration routine open for the next step. For an extra layer of security, enable MAC address filtering. Set the SSID The next step in securing your network is changing its name, which is usually referred to as the service …

Explore Windows configuration options for establishing your Internet connection. wireless systems won’t connect to the Internet just yet, you may need to take another step or two. On a Windows XP system, try disabling the Windows wireless-configuration feature to establish a connection. This step is also necessary if you want to use the bundled utilities. To disable this feature, click the XP Networking icon (it looks like two computer monitors) in the system tray at the bottom right of your screen. When the Wireless Network Connection dialog appears, click the Advanced button and select the Wireless Networks tab. Uncheck “Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings” and click OK to accept the change. Now reboot your system to bring the connection to life. Install a PCI card in each desktop system you want to connect to your network. For operating system versions other than Windows XP, a simple reboot …

Learn how to install a Wi-Fi adapter in your PC. Install a PCI card in each desktop system you want to connect to your network. A Wi-Fi adapter connects your computer to the network. If your computer doesn’t already have the adapter that you need built in, you can add one. Tip: If you’re lucky enough to have a notebook with built-in Wi-Fi, you won’t need the PC Card adapter. Install the Wi-Fi adapter in each system that will connect wirelessly to the router. If you’re using the D-Link PC Card and PCI adapters, install the software from the CD before installing the hardware, then shut down your system, install the adapter, and reboot. After Windows boots, the Found New Hardware wizard should appear and initiate the driver installation. Select “Install the software automatically” and click Next. If you see a message warning that the driver has not passed Windows …

Learn how to install and configure your wireless router. Routers act as the gateway between your broadband connection (DSL or cable modem) and your home network. As the name implies, these devices route traffic between your network and the Internet. Most include built-in DHCP servers that automatically assign the right IP address information to each computer on your local-area network, or LAN. A separate WAN, or wide-area network, interface on the router connects your entire home or office network to your broadband modem, allowing you to share your Internet connection through the router. Most routers also have firewall capabilities, and some include more advanced security features. Connect your modem to the WAN port on the router and your PC to an open Ethernet port on the router. Before you install your router, power down your PC and modem, then disconnect the Ethernet cable from your PC and connect it to …

A broadband connection brings the Internet into your home at blazing speeds. And with a wireless, or Wi-Fi, network, you can get that access on multiple computers throughout your home–and even outside it–without cords. What’s more, today’s wireless-networking products make broadband Internet sharing easy, inexpensive, and secure. In this course, you’ll learn you how to distribute broadband Internet access among multiple notebook or desktop systems, and take the necessary steps to keep your network protected. You’ll find your Ethernet adapter’s IP address, subnet mask, and default gateway within its Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties. The core of a Wi-Fi network is a wireless router or gateway. In this course, we’ll use the D-Link DI-624 AirPlus Xtreme G 802.11g router (click here to check current prices). If your computer doesn’t already have a wireless network adapter built-in, you’ll need to install one for each system that connects to the network. We’ll install …

How to know whether your neighbors or others are using your wireless network is rather complicated. If your neighbors are experienced Wi-Fi hackers, you might not be able to tell at all. If they’re just stealing your Internet connection, you may be able to tell from the logs on your router. You could look for logs such as current LAN clients, connection or status log, or connected MAC addresses. Check MAC ID addresses To find out who’s on your wireless network, you’ll need to start by taking inventory of all the devices that are meant to be connected. Find out their MAC IDs and their IP addresses (if they’re static). To find out the MAC ID/IP address on a PC, click the Start menu and choose Run. Type cmd and click OK. In the screen that opens, type “ipconfig /all” (without the quotes) and hit Enter. The MAC address will …

Siang itu, di sela-sela sebuah acara di Denpasar saya ngobrol dengan Purdi Chandra dan Mr. Joger, dua pengusaha yang terkenal humoris. Mr. Joger sempat bercerita bahwa dia tidak pernah sekalipun merasa sedih. Dia selalu gembira, antusias dan berpikir positif. Ternyata, konsep duka memang tidak ada dalam benaknya. Terus, dia bertutur tentang Purdi Chandra yang hampir selalu berhasil dalam bisnis-bisnisnya. Rupa-rupanya, Purdi Chandra memang tidak pernah memasukkan konsep gagal ke dalam pikirannya. Mirip-mirip dengan orang gila. Hush, jangan sembarangan! Lha, saya serius! Apa pernah orang gila jatuh sakit? Jarang-jarang ‘kan? Itu karena konsep sakit tidak pernah ada di benak orang gila. Tengok pula anak kecil.

Malicious hackers and virus writers can infect your computer by taking advantage of low security settings in your e-mail and Web browsing software. They can do this by sending you a malicious e-mail message or by enticing you to visit a malicious Web site. You can help limit your chances of being attacked by increasing your security settings. Here are four steps you can do right now to help increase your security. 1: Set your browser security to High