Small Business Networks

Why have a network in a small business?

There are several reasons why a network could be an asset in a small business environment.

bulletYou have files that may be needed by several different people - word processing documents, spreadsheets, database files, schedules, appointment records, etc.
bulletYou have one or more printers that you want everyone to be able to use from their own computers.
bulletYou want to be able to access the Internet from more than one computer simultaneously but you don't want to provide a dedicated phone line and internet account for each one.

 

 

What do I need?

  1. A Network Interface Card (NIC) for each computer.
  2. A hub (interconnection box). This is required if you're connecting more than two computers but is optional if you have only two computers.
  3. One cross-over cable to connect 2 computers without a hub OR One standard cable for each NIC if you are connecting two or more computers with a hub.

How much will it cost?

Hardware for a 2 computer network is $79 or less. Setting up the network is $49. Checkout Home Networking options for more information on costs.

If I want to set up Internet Connection Sharing myself, what do I do?

Microsoft's Internet Connection Sharing comes with Windows 98 Second Edition and subsequent versions of Windows. InfiniSource has produced a good explanation of how to install & troubleshoot ICS for Windows 98.

InfiniSource-98
With the advent of Windows XP, installation and use of ICS is faster and easier. Again, Infinisource has a good explanation of how to install and use it.

InfiniSource-XP