The next thing to do is ensure that your PC's network adaptor - PCI,
CardBus, USB or built-in - is set up to automatically
obtain a network address (an IP address, in other words). This presumes
that you're using a network router or a combined router/ADSL
modem that is able to dish out IP addresses to PCs (and other devices)
by using DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration
Protocol.
So, let's look at where you go to check that your PC is set to
automatically obtain an IP address - and what to do if it's not.
Step 1 - Go to Control Panel (via
Start menu) and click
on Network and Internet
Connections
Step 2 - Click on Network Connections
Step 3 - In the LAN or High-Speed Internetsection,
right-click on the
active network card and choose Properties from the
drop-down list
Step 4 - Click once on Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) then click on Properties.
Alternatively, double-click on
Internet Protocol
(TCP/IP)
Step 5 - In each section,
the top
radio button should be active - Obtain an IP address
automatically and Obtain DNS server address
automatically. If
they're not, make a written note of the numerical settings you see. Either
way, make NO change yet. Instead, click
on the Advanced
button
Step 6 - Here, you can
see
that DCHP is indeed enabled. To get back
to the previous screen, press Cancel. Only press OK
IF you've made changes that you want to keep
Step 7 - Finally, if you
are
using a router or modem that dishes out IP addresses, make
sure to tick the top radio button in each section.
Then OK out of all dialogues. If IP
addresses aren't
provided, you'll have to input the IP address and other
settings yourself -
and that's beyond the scope of
this mini teach-in but is something
we're happy to help with in the HEXUS.community (see
links on the previous page)