Create a home network

Posted on 8 Apr 2009 at 14:53

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Plugging in your kit

With a wireless router taking care of a lot of the administration of a network, your main jobs are configuring the router with your internet settings, setting up a secure wireless network and plugging in any wired devices that you want to use. Our step-by-step walkthrough explains how to configure the router and connect wireless devices, but before you do that you should connect your wired devices.

This is a surprisingly simply job. First, you need to plan where you want to put your wireless router. If you've got broadband, it should be situated near the point where your internet connection enters the house, which is probably where your modem is currently located.

If you've got cable internet with Virgin Media, you should plug an Ethernet cable from the router's WAN port and into the Ethernet port on the cable modem. If you have ADSL, unplug your existing modem and plug the RJ11 telephone cable into the WAN port on the router. The other end of this telephone cable should be connected to an ADSL filter, which in turn is plugged into the telephone socket.

If you've got any PCs or other devices close to your router, you should connect them via Ethernet cables. If you don't have any cables, buy Cat5e Patch Cables. These are available from Maplin in lengths of between 50cm and 5m, for £4.49 to £7.99 including VAT. To connect them, simply plug one end into the network port on the back of your device and the other end into a spare port on the back of the router.

We'll assume that, if you want to connect devices located further away from the router, you're not prepared to rewire your home with Ethernet. For any devices that won't move, we recommend using powerline networking. To get this working, you need to have a spare power socket near the router into which you can plug a powerline networking adaptor. A wall socket is the best option, as powerline networking's speed is affected if you use a multi-way extension socket and won't work at all if you plug an adaptor into a surge-protector.

Plug one end of an Ethernet cable into the powerline adaptor's socket and the other into a spare port on the back of the router. To connect devices around the rest of your home, you simply need to plug one powerline adaptor into a wall socket near the device you want to network, then connect the device to the adaptor using an Ethernet cable.

For security, powerline networking devices can encrypt traffic. How you achieve this will depend on the technology and adaptors you're using. You will either need to use some software or push a button on the front of an adaptor. Check the instructions that came with your adaptors for more details. You can now follow the instructions for configuring your wireless router and connecting your wireless devices.

Networking

With your network connected and configured properly, you should find that you can now browse the internet from any connected device simply by starting your web browser. If you can't, you should turn to our network troubleshooting guide, included in the article 'Fix your PC in 15 Minutes', which is on your cover disc.

A home network provides more than the ability to share your internet connection. You can share files and printers, too. The 'How to... Share Files with Vista' article on your cover disc will show you how to share folders between Windows computers. Similar steps will let you share a printer on the network.

Getting secure