In this article we will describe how to connect two PCs together to play multiplayer games or share files. In fact, we will create a LAN with two computers.
You can do this using wireless network cards or using a cable. We will describe the “wired” way. The “wired” way can be done using two ethernet cables and a hub or using a crossover ethernet cable which is the cheapest and works brilliantly.
This is what to do:
You must first physically connect the two computers. Check that both PCs have LAN cards. So all you need is a crossover cable (RJ45-CAT5 crossover crimp). Connect the two computers using the crossover cable and the ports on the LAN cards.
Now you need to apply some settings to the “connected” computers. We will describe how to do this on Windows systems. We will refer to the two computers as ComputerA and ComputerB. Let’s start the setup.
ComputerA
– Right click on “My Computer” and then click on “Properties”
– Click on the “Computer Name” tab and click on the “Change …” button.
– Change the name to the one you like the most. For this example we will call it ComputerA. Here you can also change the name of the workgroup to whatever you want, but it must be the same on both computers. For this example, we will call the working group “OURLAN”.
– Click OK
– In TCP / IP settings … Open “Control Panel” and click “Network Connections”
– Your LAN connection will appear. Right-click on its icon and select “Properties.”
– In the “General” tab, select “Internet Protocol (TCP / IP)” and then click “Properties”
– Set the following values:
IP address -> 192.168.72.1
Subnet mask -> 255.255.255.0
Default gateway -> 192.168.72.2
– Click OK and you are done with ComputerA.
ComputerB
– Right click on “My Computer” and then click on “Properties”
– Click on the “Computer Name” tab and click on the “Change …” button.
– Change the name to “ComputerB”. Also change the workgroup name to “OURLAN” (remember that the workgroup name must be the same on both computers)
– Click OK
– In TCP / IP settings … Open “Control Panel” and click “Network Connections”
– Your LAN connection will appear. Right-click on its icon and select “Properties.”
– In the “General” tab, select “Internet Protocol (TCP / IP)” and then click “Properties”
– Set the following values:
IP address -> 192.168.72.2
Subnet mask -> 255.255.255.0
Default gateway -> 192.168.72.1
– Click OK and you are done with ComputerB.
Now the two computers should be connected. If you don’t see that they detect each other, try restarting them. You can play your favorite multiplayer games using the connection method above. You can also transfer files and data.
If you want to access the other computer, go to “My Network Places”. A good idea would be to map a network drive to a local hard drive for easy access.