My home setup has two PCs running Windows XP, and one printer attached to each PC. I wish to network both PCs together so any printer can be used from any PC, and to allow files and internet to be shared between the computers. You recently wrote an article about a cross-over cable. Can one of these cables be used for this setup, or do we need to buy a special router or print server?

This is a good question, since there are different ways this problem can be tackled. You are correct that a cross-over cable could be used to network the two PCs and printers. For those who don’t know network terminology, the cross-over cable has the send and receive wire pairings reversed, allowing for the cable to be run directly between two network cards. This is different to a straight-through network cable which requires an intermediary router, switch or hub between the network cards. Assuming your internet connection comes into the ’server’ PC, using the cross-over cable will allow the ‘client’ PC to connect to the internet, so long as the server PC is on and connected to the internet. Likewise, the server PC can use the client PC printer as long as the client PC is on and vice-versa. Of course, this setup will also allow files to be shared between the computers. Windows XP Service Pack 2 has a ‘Network setup wizard’ which makes this rather complicated sounding process quite easy to setup. So, it may be worthwhile updating to SP2 on the computers.

However, there are a few issues with the above setup. First, if you have a broadband connection that connects to your computer using a network card (like the Transact network), then the server PC will require two network cards: one for the broadband connection and another for the cross-over cable between the server PC and client PC. Of course, if you have a dial-up connection this isn’t an issue, since the modem will connect to either the serial or USB port.

If you do have a broadband connection (such as cable or ADSL) then my recommended solution would be to install a broadband router. This has the primary advantage of allowing internet sharing on client PC(s), without the server PC being on. The router will manage the broadband connection and establish a connection whenever one of the connected computers requests internet access. In addition to allowing internet sharing, broadband routers also function like a normal router and allow file and print sharing.
You may wish to consider buying a router which has an inbuilt print server. This will allow printing from any PC without requiring the PC connected to the printer to be on.
Have a look at the websites for router manufacturers, such as www.netgear.com.au and www.dlink.com.au which should give you an idea about the availability of routers.

When buying a broadband router there are some important considerations you need to investigate:
‘¢ The router will work with your type of broadband connection: e.g. cable or ADSL.
‘¢ If you have an ADSL connection and are buying an ADSL router, check whether the router has an inbuilt ADSL modem (otherwise you will need to connect the router to your existing ADSL modem - NB: You can buy ADSL modem/routers).
‘¢ If buying a router with an inbuilt print server, make sure the router has the correct interface for your printer. Print servers are available for both USB printers and parallel port printers. Also, most routers which support print serving only have one print server port, so you can only connect one printer. In this case, you would probably connect the printer which will be used most over the network (while you could buy a separate print server for the second printer, which can then be connected to the router, these are very expensive).