CONTENTS
Introduction
Connecting to the CMU Net (aka: Setting up TCP/IP)
----- Physically connecting to the CMU network
----- Using FTP to transfer files
----- Telnetting
----- Where to go for extra information
Connecting the PCs together
----- Physically connecting them
----- File sharing on PC's: How we've set it up.
The purpose of this document is to give hints, tips, and tricks to setting up and using SPR's NT machines.
Connecting to the CMU Net (aka: Setting up TCP/IP)
*** (Note added by Andrew, temporarily) The connection on the back of laon to the CMU ethernet is loose. If you have no connection, that's the first thing to troubleshoot). ***
In order to connect to CMU's net, you first need to install TCP/IP drivers onto the computer. Look first under "Control Panel"/"Network". (You can find "Control Panel" in the "Main" group more often than not.) What should come up is a dialog box called "Network Settings". Within this dialog box is a list box by the name of "Installed Network Software:". Make sure the item "TCP/IP Protocol" is in the list.
If the item "TCP/IP Protocol" is not in the list, it must be installed. Select "Add Software..." and select "TCP/IP Protocol and related componants". Installation will commence from to NT Installation CD-ROM. After installation, you will have to quit the "Network Settings" dialog box. Doing this will bring the configuration panel for TCP/IP discussed in the next paragraph.
Select "TCP/IP Protocol" and click on "Configure...". This will bring up a dialog box called "TCP/IP Configuration". Make sure you have a valid IP address for the computer. (LAON.sp.cs.cmu.edu is 128.2.205.38.) Since CMU is a Class B site, the subnet mask should be 255.255.0.0. The following set of parameters works on CMU's network for the other three entries:
Default Gateway: 128.2.254.36
Primary WINS Server: 128.2.205.192
Secondary WINS Server: 128.2.198.34
Select "DNS..." in order to get to the DNS configuration dialog box. Make sure the computer's name and domain are correctly entered in the "Host Name" and "Domain Name" boxes. (Eg: Host Name: laon Domain Name: sp.cs.cmu.edu) There needs to be some valid name servers in the DNS search table. Here are some valid CMU entries:
128.2.203.61
128.2.222.199
128.2.250.187
If the machine has never been set up for networking before, a little more work needs to be done to get things started. In this case, when you select "Networking" from the Control Panel, a dialog box will pop up which says "Windows NT Networking is not installed. Install it now?" At this point in time select "Yes", and have your NT CD-ROM ready. (A note, on our machines the proper directory to type in for the NT CD-ROM is D:/i386.) It should detect the network card properly. Go ahead and set it to Autosense. Select any combination of "TCP/IP Transport" and "NetBEUI Transport". NetBEUI is used in our small local-area network. Go ahead and select all of the optional installation options (if any), but not DHCP configuration. SPMP is actually probably useless in our case, but there is no harm in installing it. Feel free to just "OK" or "Cancel" out of most of the configuration windows that follow. Then get ready to configure TCP/IP as in previous paragraphs.
There are currently two machines in the lab upon which network experimentation is taking place. The righthand one is called LAON, and is set up to be connected to CMU's network. Both are set up for the local-area network.
Physically connecting to the CMU network
Physically connecting to CMU's network is actually very simple. Take the B&C connector and attach it to the network card in the computer. If you are using a TEE adaptor (shaped like a "T"), make sure you have a terminator or another computer on the other end of the T.
There are many ways to FTP from a TCP/IP connected machine. One simple way is to go to a DOS prompt and type "ftp some.machine.name". This should work just like normal ftp.
There are any number of Windows-compatable FTP programs. These programs are easy to use and install. Two common programs are WS_FTP and CuteFTP.
On LAON, these utilities can be found in the Communication group.
Telnetting is the same as using ftp. You can type "telnet some.machine.name", or you can use a better Windows telnet program. I suggest QVT/Term.
On LAON, these utilities can be found in the Communication group.
Where to go for extra information
Mike write something here
In order to connect the PC's together, NetBUEI must first be set up. Look first under "Control Panel"/"Network". (You can find "Control Panel" in the "Main" group more often than not.) What should come up is a dialog box called "Network Settings". Within this dialog box is a list box by the name of "Installed Network Software:". Make sure the item "NetBUEI Protocol" is in the list.
If the item "NetBUEI Protocol" is not in the list, it must be installed. Select "Add Software..." and select "NetBUEI Protocol". Installation will commence from to NT Installation CD-ROM.
If the machine has never been set up for networking before, a little more work needs to be done to get things started. In this case, when you select "Networking" from the Control Panel, a dialog box will pop up which says "Windows NT Networking is not installed. Install it now?" At this point in time select "Yes", and have your NT CD-ROM ready. (A note, on our machines the proper directory to type in for the NT CD-ROM is D:/i386.) It should detect the network card properly. Go ahead and set it to Autosense. Select any combination of "TCP/IP Transport" and "NetBEUI Transport". NetBEUI is used in our small local-area network. Go ahead and select all of the optional installation options (if any), but not DHCP configuration. SPMP is actually probably useless in our case, but there is no harm in installing it. Feel free to just "OK" or "Cancel" out of most of the configuration windows that follow.
The computer should have a unique Computer Name. If it does not, give it one now. All of SPRs computers should also probably be in the same workgroup. Change the Workgroup setting to "SPR".
Physically connecting the machines requires network coax, B&C TEE connectors, and two terminators.
B&C TEE B&C TEE
Cable __________ __________ ___
============|___ ___|======|___ ___|___| Terminator
|__| |__|
Network Network
Card Card
The computers should be hooked up in a line with B&C TEE connectors attached to the cards and cable inbetween. At either end of the line, a terminator should be attatched.
File sharing on PC's: How we've set it up.
On NT, file sharing is done via a directory tree model. You can share a directory tree, which appears to the remote user to be a network drive.
All file sharing is done via the file manager. (This is actually a white lie. You can also do it via the command line..) To share a directory, you choose the menu item "Disk/Share As...", and set up the permissions the way you want them. The "share name" you choose is the name via which the remote user asks for the resource.
To access a shared directory, you choose "Disk/Connect Network Drive...". Select the drive letter you wish the shared directory to appear as. The path is "\\MACHINE\SHARE_NAME".