Connect Two Computers Together

Connect Two Computers Together Basic Requirements (what you will need to complete this tutorial): • Two computers with a network card installed in each one of them • 1 Crossover cable (usually a yellow Category 5 (CAT5) cable). Note: A normal CAT5 network cable will NOT work with this scenario; it must be a crossover cable.

Step 1: Make sure both computers are turned off. Step 2: Connect one end of the crossover cable to the network card in computer 1 (it does not matter which end). Step 3: Connect the other end of the crossover cable to the network card in computer 2. Step 4: Turn both computers on (it does not matter which one you turn on first). Step 5:Sign-in to Windows on both computers, as you normally do.

Step 6: Wait until both computers have fully loaded Windows and all startup programs (your mouse pointer will be the normal arrow shape and the programs that load in the system tray (usually located at the bottom right side of the screen, to the left of the timeclock) will all be there when the system is ready to use). Configuring both Computers to be in the same Workgroup: ( Perform the following steps on both computers) Step 7: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Start' button.

Step 8: With the right mouse button, click on 'My Computer'.

Step 9: With the left mouse button, click on 'Properties'.

Step 10: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Computer Name' tab.

Step 11: Observe the Workgroup name listed on computer 1 (MYHOME).

We will now change computer 2 (HOME) to match computer 1 (MYHOME). Leave the 'Computer Name' tab on the 'System Properties' dialog box on computer 1 open. We will verify that computer 2 matches computer 1 after computer 2 has been restarted, at Step 18 below. Step 12: On computer 2, with the left mouse button, click on the 'Change...' button.

Step 13: Type the Workgroup name listed on computer 1 in the 'Workgroup' textbox (in this example, 'MYHOME').

Step 14: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

A message box appears: Welcome to the MYHOME workgroup (in this example). Step 15: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

Another message box appears: 'You must restart this computer for the changes to take effect.'. Step 16: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

The 'System Properties' dialog box reappears, with the 'Computer Name' tab selected. Step 17: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

A message box appears: 'You must restart your computer before the new settings will take effect. Do you want to restart your computer now?' Step 18: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Yes' button.

Computer 2 restarts and both computers are now in the same Workgroup (MYHOME). Before proceeding to Step 19, follow Steps 7 - 11 to verify that both computers are showing the EXACT same Workgroup name (MYHOME). Step 19: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button on both computers, to close their 'System Properties' dialog boxes.

Now, we must enable 'Sharing' on both computers to be able to transfer data back and forth between them. Step 20: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Start' button.

Step 21: With the left mouse button, click on the 'My Computer' button.

Step 22: With the right mouse button, click on 'Windows (C:)' or 'Local Disk(C:)' hard disk drive (or whichever hard disk drive you want to be able to exchange files with).

Step 23: With the left mouse button, click on 'Sharing and Security...'.

Step 24: With the left mouse button, click on the link 'If you understand the risk but still want to share the root of the drive, click here.'.

Step 25: With the left mouse button, click on the link 'If you understand the security risks but want to share files without running the wizard, click here.'.

Step 26: Select 'Just enable file sharing', by clicking on the circle with the left mouse button (A green dot will appear in the circle, indicating it has been selected.). If you connect to the Internet with either of the two computers, you will definitely want to have a good firewall such as ZoneAlarm or ZoneAlarm Pro (www.zonelabs.com) or setup a router as your firewall, to minimize hacker attacks from the Internet.

Step 27: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

Step 28: With the left mouse button, click on the check box next to 'Share this folder on the network' (A green checkmark will appear in the box, indicating it has been selected). The hard disk drive name will appear in the 'Share name' text box as the default 'Share name' (You can rename it or accept the default name).

Step 29: With the left mouse button, click on the check box next to 'Allow network users to change my files' (A green checkmark will appear in the box, indicating it has been selected). This will allow you full access to the drive and its files. If you connect to the Internet with either of the two computers, you will definitely want to have a good firewall such as ZoneAlarm or ZoneAlarm Pro (www.zonelabs.com) or setup a router as your firewall, to minimize hacker attacks from the Internet.

Step 30: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

Step 31: The 'Setting folder permissions...' dialog box briefly appears.

The 'My Computer' window reappears with a hand holding the hard disk drive, indicating that it is now shared. Step 32: With the left mouse button, double-click on 'Windows (C:)' or 'Local Disk(C:)' hard disk drive (or whichever hard disk drive the files and folders are located on that you want to gain access to).

Step 33: With the left mouse button, double-click on 'Documents and Settings'.

Step 34: With the right mouse button, click on the folder or 'User Name' where the files and folders are located that you want to gain access to.

Step 35: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Sharing and Security... '.

Step 36: With the left mouse button, click on the check box 'Make this folder private ' to remove the checkmark from the box. If there is no checkmark in the box already, skip to step 37.

Step 37: With the left mouse button, click on the checkbox next to 'Share this folder on the network' to place a check in the box. The user's folder name will appear in the 'Share name' text box as the default 'Share name' (You can rename it or accept the default name).

Step 38: With the left mouse button, click on the checkbox next to 'Allow network users to change my files' to place a check in the box.

Step 39: With the left mouse button, click on the 'OK' button.

Step 40: The 'Setting folder permissions...' dialog box briefly appears.

Step 41: A hand holding the folder appears, indicating the folder is now shared.

Step 42: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Close' button to close the 'C:\Documents and Settings' window. Repeat steps 34-39 to share other folders on the computers. Step 43: With the left mouse button, click on the 'Start' button.

Step 44: With the left mouse button, click on 'Control Panel'. Step 45: With the left mouse button, click on 'Network Connections' or 'Network and Internet Connections', then 'Network Connections'. Step 46: With the left mouse button, click on 'My Network Places', below 'Other Places', on the left side of the screen. Step 47: With the left mouse button, click on 'View workgroup computers', below 'Network Tasks', on the left side of the screen.

Step 48: With the left mouse button, double-click on one of the computers to view the shared folders / files on it. Note: It could take up to 15 minutes for the computers to start showing up. It is a known issue with the Windows XP Computer Browser function. It is quicker to just restart all computers, if one of them is not showing up. You will see your computers, unless your firewall is preventing them from showing up (or they are not in the same workgroup). It is best practice to have all computers in the same workgroup, so they will show up on the other computers. If you do not see your computers, then either configure your firewall to allow file sharing between them or temporarily shut the firewall down. If you connect to the Internet with either of the two computers, you will definitely want to have a good firewall such as ZoneAlarm or ZoneAlarm Pro (www.zonelabs.com) or setup a router as your firewall, to minimize hacker attacks from the Internet. You can now exchange data between the two computers. For More Detail go to: http://www.leeindy.com/connecting_two_computers_using_crossover_cables.shtml

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