Question about connecting to Net

[hawkeyestate]

I moved into a Duplex this weekend, and the person who lives below me has a modem with 4 ethernet ports, and I tried running an ethernet cable straight from the modem to my computer, but apparently my computer is to old and the ethernet jack won't fit(unless I'm missing a hidden spot.) My question is, could I run the ethernet cable from the connected modem downstairs, to a modem that is not connected to the net upstairs, then run that modem to my computer through a usb cable. Will that work or what do I need to do.

Thanks

 

[poertner_1274]

It sounds to me like you are trying to plug in an ethernet cord into a phone cord slot on your motherboard. I would suggest buying a PCI ethernet card. They are cheap and will give you the best results. Then you can hook directly into your neighbors router.

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Thanks.

 

[NetCablesPlus]

If you are worried about plugging a PCI board into your motherboard as poertner_1274 suggests, there are special cable adapters that convert a USB 2.0 slot into an ethernet connection.

 

[DelJo63]

here's a picture of an ethernet (rj45) cable in blue (they come is several colors)

and this is an rj11 phone cable

you can see the difference in the two connectors

 

[hawkeyestate]

Ok I bought an ethernet card and it's installed on the motherboard, it's connected through a cable downstairs to a working modem. When I try to run inernet explorer it won't open any pages. The ethernet card I bought is a Zonet Zen3200. I'm thoroughly confused. I don't know if I need to run through steps so my computer reads the ethernet card or what, but I was told that I would just be able to plug it in and go, which has not been the case.

 

[TangoTrolly]

To see if your Ethernet Adapter is recognized, go to Control Panel, click on the System Icon, click on the Hardware tab, Click on Device Manager. The next window shows all your devices. In the list you should see Network Adapters (green icon). Click on the plus sign next to Network Adapters and you should see the name of your adapter, which is Zonet Zen3200. Right click your adapter and click on Properties. The next window tells you if your device is working properly. You also have a Driver tab, for updating your driver (you should have the driver ready from a download or CD).

If you do not see it, it is not installed. Run the CD that came with the card or get the drivers from the manufacturer. If it shows, but has a yellow question mark, there is a problem with the driver. Try an updated driver from the manufacturer.

I am not clear on what you want to do with the modem downstairs. Yes, you can run a network cable from the modem downstairs to your computer and it should work. However, you can not run two PCs from the same modem, unless it is a modem/router combination. To run multiple PCs from one modem, you need a router with an integrated switch. They usually come with 4 to 8 ports, meaning you can connect 4 to 8 PCs.

Hope this helps.

 

[DelJo63]

Ok, first get your Device MGR active
(My computer->right-click->properties->Devices)
find the Network Adaptors and expand the list
There should be no RED or YELLOW marks on the device.
If there is, you need to correct the Driver and it should be on the CD
that came with the card.

Did you ever config the existing Router?

Your NIC card needs only to have DHCP active for both the IP and DNS addresses.
use the cp->Network to access your devices, select the NIC card name
and click Properties and click both radio buttons for DHCP
click ok until all windows are closed

Now use run->cmd /k ipconfig /all and there should be a list of IP info,
including one or more DNS addresses. If so, then try
ping www.google.com
there should be no timeouts shown.

If you get this far just launch your browser!

 

[GeekieNick101]

Since you said you had an older system I'm guessing your not running Microsoft Windows XP OR VISTA. I'm guessing your not running me or 2000 either, my guess would be 98 or below. Is this correct? Since Xp and Vista require no driver since its built in, so I guessing you need a driver via cd or internet download, or in some cases they still come with floppy disks.

 

[NetCablesPlus]

If the previous posters' suggestions do not solve your problem, also consider replacing your current ethernet cable with a known working one. It could be a bad cable.

 

[kitty500cat]

If the network card is recognized, try going into Control Panel-->Network Connections. Right-click on your current connection, and click Properties. Select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click the properties button. Select "Use the following IP address" and specify some IP address, in the desired range, that you know isn't being used.

I'm not sure whether or not you need to specify a DNS server or have it automatically choose. If it doesn't work when you have it choose automatically, try selecting "Use the following DNS server address" and inputting the IP address of the router.

Regards

edit: this may not work if you're not running Windows XP. I should have thought about that before I started typing

 

[DelJo63]

please reply with your OS+Edition+Version, eg:
Win/XP HOME SP2, Linux/Fedoria 4, ...