i tried plaing halflife/counterstrike over LAN recently. I had one of the networked computers make a game, but the other computers couldn't see it... why?

All were running win2k pro and win XP..


we pressed update, and refresh countless times.

Please advise. thank you

The computers can ping each other, right?

What private IP addresses are you using for them?

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well, im sure the computers can ping each other, and well, the computers use a 12.246.xxx.xxx Ip address. Both computers are hooked to my cable modem, and both get bandwidth. but my computer doesn't show up in "my network places".

whats going on?

im using a sohoware Tbase ethernet hub

I imagine there's more going on here than you realize.

Your broadband router is likely giving your computers separate private IP addresses, though they appear to have 12.246.*.* externally. In effect, your broadband router is the only real computer visible on the Internet, with that 12.246.*.* address, but it translates source/destination packets so that multiple computers can make requests and have them served, with the router acting as proxy.

Try pinging one from the other. Check their IP addresses with IPCONFIG, and then ping one from the other.

The fact that they don't show up in My Network Places is largely irrelevant - My Network Places is based on NetBEUI - Computers not running NetBEUI won't be visible in the Windows Workgroup network.

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well the comptuers ping each other with 0 % packet loss.

both of my networked computers are running win2k pro.

I have a SoHOware HUb...

how can i get my computers to share files over my network places? it says:

"Workgroup is not accessible:

the list of servers for this workgroup is not currently available.

how do i fix this? i need to be able to file share and play lan games in half life

I appreciate all the help Cutriss

You said you can ping each. Are you sure you're pinging the private IP and not the source IP?

What are your private IP addresses? You don't have to worry about people using them to bad ends - That's why they're "private". I'm just making sure. Reply back with each machine's IP address.

And as far as the filesharing thing goes...Go in the Network and Dial-up Connections folder, right-click on Local Area Connection, select Properties. Click Install..., select Protocol and hit Add..., and select NetBEUI. Do this for each machine on the network. Also, if it's not already there, add the File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks service. Click Install..., select Service and hit Add..., and select it. It should already be there on a Windows 2000 machine.

Windows XP machines have a good bit of this turned off by default, so you might need to take a look.

But as I said above - post your private IP address. There's nothing wrong with doing it. For instance, my private IP on the machine I'm on is 192.168.1.22. You can't do anything with it.

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"And knowing is half the battle!"

Thanks for all the help,

I know hwo to find my Source IP by using ipconfig, but how do i find private IP?

as for the filesharing with win2k pro

I did what you asked and installed the NetBEUI protocol.

but the same problem is still evident. Now however, the "my network places" stops responding and has to be closed manually in task manager.

Could this be related to my hub?

IPCONFIG should tell you your private IP address. If IPCONFIG is telling you that both your computers have a 12.246 address, then you might have some sort of a funny broadband setup. What service do you use (cable/DSL/satellite), and what kind/type of broadband modem do you have? How does it connect with your network?

Quote:

as for the filesharing with win2k pro I did what you asked and installed the NetBEUI protocol. but the same problem is still evident. Now however, the "my network places" stops responding and has to be closed manually in task manager. Could this be related to my hub?

Possibly. Make sure all your computers are in the same Windows workgroup, and that none of them have the same computer name. That could cause the hang you mention.

well, i connect to the net with a cable modem, which is a DHCP compliant modem. i have a dynamic IP address, with service by ATT broadband.

my computers are all named differently and are part of the same workgroup. (WORKGROUP)

thanks for all the help.

However, i think i did go off subject. how do i have my game show up on a half-life lan game?

Okay then. The key element here is this - Do all of your computers have a public address on them, or do they have private addresses? Private IPs fall in the following ranges:

Range 1: Class A - 10.0.0.0 through 10.255.255.255
Range 2: Class B - 172.16.0.0 through 172.31.255.255
Range 3: Class C - 192.168.0.0 through 192.168.255.255

If your computers' IP addresses fall in that range, then they're using NAT, or Network Address Translation. Basically, your router is hiding your computers from the uplink connection, and handling all their network requests personally.

If your addresses don't fall in those ranges, then you may have slipped through AT&T's cracks - Unless you specifically request it and they give it to you, each cable subscriber should only have one IP address. You have to use special software or equipment to get several computers to use that one address.

Give me as much detail as you can so that I can help.

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"And knowing is half the battle!"

Ok Heres my exact setup

My cable modem is an RCA DHCP compliant Cable modem provided by ATT Broadband.

It sends bandwidth to my 10 megabit SOHOWARE HUB

I have two computers, each run Windows 2000 Professional, w/ service pack 2.

They each are connected to the hub under ports 1 and 2 and the uplink is in 5.

my computers IP addresses are both different. I have never requested anything from ATTBI (att broadband)

My ip address full under 12.246.xxx.xxx these are dynamic IP addresses, so they dont change till they expire.

I have no idea what the problem is. And im still trying to learn about this networking business.. thanks for all the help.

To answer your questions..

I guess they are public Ip addressess, since they dont fall under those ip address you stated.

I NEVER asked for 2 different IP addresses, ive even had 4 different IP addresses at a LAN party which i hosted.

ok, i got printer and file sharing to work.. now both comptuers show up in "my network places"

However, im still having problems in half life playing LAN... the game i create on one computer stilll doesn't show up on the other.. Why is this?

thanks.

By default, most ISPs don't let you have more than one public IP address, or if they do, they complain because you're using more than one computer on the network, and once upon a time, they were silly enough to believe that you'd pay twice to use broadband on two different computers.

AT&T may be blocking inbound port requests. If you're using DHCP, then what happens is that one game is running a server, and when the other machine tries to connect to it, it goes out to the Internet, and back in. Effectively, you're running a game server.

Your network setup isn't exactly ideal either, and it makes you vulnerable to network attacks. You should definitely consider getting a firewall/router. A 4-port Linksys router costs $99 at Office Depot. You could also get a single-port router cheaper, and plug it into your hub, but be sure you find one that performs NAT, letting you get on the network with more than one computer. Otherwise, it won't work.

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i was afraid that might be the problem. Would running winproxy make any difference?

what would be the ideal way of hooking up my computers?

Winproxy would work, but since you're running 2K/XP, Windows Internet Connection Sharing would work just as well. If you're not getting a hardware-based router, getting BlackICE Defender should be your next-best thing.

Really, though, if I were you, I'd just get a hardware router. Less software configuration hassles/performance issues...Don't have to always leave one computer on...Also, the software you'd need is nearly $100 as it is...

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"And knowing is half the battle!"