Two Computers Connected with no hub

[Pyromidion]

I have my main box here (win xp), with a lan card, and onboard lan (of which i am using for my internet).
if i have my 2nd box (win 98) with a lan card, is there any way to hook them up with out needing to buy a hub? ive heard of crossover cables, but dont know anything about it at all,. is this the way to go?

it wouldnt be for sharing the internet, thou only for files so i dont have to keep transferin files by way of my usb HDD.

-john

 

[Zelmo3]

That would be cheapest, because all you need is the right cable. You just can't have your main rig connected to the internet and the other computer at the same time, because they each need the LAN port.
A more expensive option is to get two wireless cards and use them in ad-hoc mode. That keeps your LAN port free so you don't have to switch cables when you want to get on the internet.

 

[imported_rhfactor]

If you don't want to spend that much money, you should get a B wireless router with PC card, assuming you have broadband. They should cost about the same as a cross over cable. It would not be that great on connection but then you are going to use with Win 98 so it should not be too bad. Just remember to use some sort of security if you are going this route.

 

[JackMDS]

Following Rhfactor advise.

Cable/DSL Routers are so inexpensive that buying a crossover cable or a Cable/DSL Router on sale is in the same ball game.

Even if you do not want to share the Internet a LAN around a Switch and DHCP Server (both are provided by a Cable/DSL Router) is better and more flexesible then a Double NIC arrangement, and you get a Hardware NAT Firewall too.

:sun:

 

[Pyromidion]

just to clarify my statement,
my main box has 2 lan ports.....one on board, and one card.
if i use one port to go to my hub, and the 2nd to crossover to my 98 box?

 

[amdskip]

Correct!

 

[Garion]

There's one rule that you should always follow in networking - Keep it Simple. Don't make things more complex than they need to be.

Go out and buy a cheap router and use it for Internet access and connect both of your PC's to it - Don't mess with two separate networks and having to maintain two different IP address ranges, etc. Also, "The 98 box won't need Internet access" are famous last words that I've heard dozens of times. Guess what I usually hear the next day? Watch the sale ads, wired routers are a dime a dozen nowadays, especially if you can deal with a rebate or two to drive the price down even more.

Not only that, if you don't have a router, you should. I read an interesting article a few months ago - On average, it takes an unsedured, unpatched PC just a few hours to be compromised when it's directly on the Internet. A router takes care of 95% of those intrusions and significantly increases the overall security of your environment.

- G

 

[imported_ppc]

oooooooor - you could make your own crossover cable from a cat5 cable if you have one although I am sure someone from the boards will tell you other wise.... I've done it - worked fine. Search google for a how to - all you have to do is cross like two wires or so.

 

[BlueWeasel]

As ppc suggested --> How to make your own straight-thru and crossover cables