Connecting a Non-Networked PC to my T1 temporarily for Internet Access

Status
Not open for further replies.

servtec

Beta member
Messages
4
Can someone explain the intracacies of connecting a non-employee pc to my T1 at work for internet usage?

We often have vendors who come to our business and they want to connect to our T1 line for quick internet service. However, up until now, we've been placing them on our network to do so and then taking them off again.

Is there an easier way to do this?

Thanks,
Kalif
 
What do you mean by "placing them on your network?"

Do you mean plugging their laptop into a switch/hub on your network? Or, do you mean them logging onto the domain?
Or, do you mean them getting an IP address from a DHCP server?

I'm not really sure what you are trying to describe here. Post back with some more details.
 
Connecting....

Normally when a vendor visits our company, they bring their own laptop. Sometimes, they request to use our network for the fast internet connection since we have a T1 line.

My question is:

What's the easiest way to get this PC to connect to the internet if it is using a switch on our network?

I don't want to setup a profile for them and have them log into the domain.

Do I have to reconfigure the pc's network settings and make them a part of our workgroup/domain?


Which O/S works better for this type of on-demand connectivity?

I was ill-advised that a pc would automatically connect to the internet just by using an available RJ45 connection.
 
If you have a DHCP server running, and the laptop is set to "obtain an IP address automatically" then the laptop should get an IP address, without problems.

You shouldnt have to have them join the domain to get internet access.

It also depends on your switch configuration. If you are trying to connect a computer into a switch that has VLANs configured, and the DHCP server is on another subnet, and there is no DHCP relay agent, then the computer wont be able to get an IP address.
 
connecting...

Would I then have to go into network properties, make certain that their are no static IPs set and also make certain that it is set for DHCP and then it would obtain an IP address automatically?

What would be the reason for this not to work?

I've been through this before and I haven't seen static IPs configured????

Thanks for your help...
 
connecting...

I think you have something there about the VLANs...

I need to check on something....

Please disregard my last post.

Thanks
 
i know for a fact that all you do is plug it in and it will work. i am currently doing it as i type this message. if for some reason it doesnt work there might be a proxy setting that might need to be changed. if you set it to automatically detect settings it should bypass the proxy otherwise you can put in your proxy settings on that same screen
 
there is a way to disallow public access to the dhcp server though. If that option is set then you cannot simply plug in and get i-net access. I will have to try and dig up that info from techrepublic.com
 
Re: connecting...

servtec said:
Would I then have to go into network properties, make certain that their are no static IPs set and also make certain that it is set for DHCP and then it would obtain an IP address automatically?

What would be the reason for this not to work?

I've been through this before and I haven't seen static IPs configured????

Thanks for your help...

All you need to do is setup DHCP and they should receive an internal IP address and be able to surf the net. All the customer has to do is make sure their PC is setup to use DHCP and not statically.

DHCP will assign an IP address automatically and there is no reason for it not to work as long as things are setup properly.

Remember if you have MAC filters on your DHCP server/router then it might be configured so only specified MAC addresses can connect (I would disable that)
 
here is how its done:
From Microsoft Knowledge Base article Q240247, here's how to set up a DHCP class:

Create a New User or Vendor Option Class

1. Start DHCP Manager.
2. In the console tree, click the applicable DHCP server branch.
3. Right-click the server, and then click Define User Classes to create a new user class, or click Define Vendor Classes to create a new vendor class.
4. Click Add.
5. In the New Class dialog box, type a descriptive identifying name for the new option in the Display name box. You may also add additional information to the Description box.
6. Type in the data to be used by the DHCP Server service for matching the class ID provided by DHCP clients under ID or ASCII. To enter the data as hexadecimal byte numeric values, click the left side of the text box. To enter data as American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) text character values, click the right side of the text box.
7. Click OK, and then click Close.

Configure a DHCP Scope with the New Class ID

1. In DHCP Manager, double-click the appropriate DHCP scope.
2. Right-click Scope Options and then click Configure Options.
3. Click Advanced.
4. Click to select the check box or boxes next to the features you want to use with the new vendor or user class.
5. Click OK.

Set the Specified DHCP Class ID String for Client Computers

Client computers that connect to a Windows 2000-based DHCP server can use the following command to set the specified DHCP class ID string:

ipconfig /setclassid adapter_name class_id

For example, to configure an adapter called "Local Area Connection" with a user class ID called "myuserclass", type ipconfig /setclassid "Local Area Connection" myuserclass at a command prompt, and then press ENTER.
Alternate solutions

Besides setting up a DHCP Class, there are some other ways to restrict unauthorized machines from accessing the Internet.

Member markusfrei@gmx.net suggested, "You could install a proxy server and set up your PCs to only be allowed access to the Internet via that proxy server. Within the proxy server you could then set the users who are allowed Internet access."

Member rfurze also provided a suggestion for allowing Internet access to guests, while keeping the corporate network safe: "The visitors could plug into specific connections in a conference room or guest area and those connections could go back to a separate DMZ zone that isn't on your regular network. If they don't need to login to your network and only need Internet access there is much less risk and work involved if they are on their own separate network on a DMZ. I would also recommend having an appropriate policy and procedure that they are educated in, and sign off on, before they plug in."
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom