I have an XP desktop computer which is about 7 years old now. It is still in good working condition but we have decided to upgrade to a newer system for our new office. So we want to make the old computer available for my sister to use in the old office and network it to our router as the main computer on the network. But the computer has no ethernet connection.
How would I go about getting a card so that we can create a wired connection to the router? I believe I would need an internal network card. Are these easy to install and set-up? I am a hardware beginner and have never fitted anything like that before. I have had a look on eBay and you can get them on there from people who are selling used parts.
2007-10-01 02:11:38 · 4 answers · asked by daggerchristof 1 in Computers & Internet ➔ Computer Networking
You need an Internal Network Card
It's very cheap
You can Install it with out any help
Check these sites for more details
http://compreviews.about.com/od/tutorials/ss/DIYPCICard.htm
http://lifehacker.com/software/feature/how-to-install-a-pci-card-135479.php
2007-10-01 02:16:15 · answer #1 · answered by computex 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Networking is very simple, yes any Ethernet will do in these days only TP style Ethernet survived such standard war since about a decade ago.
Hardware is very simple to setup, unless you see the circuit board actually break in two there is very little way you can screw up at this step, slots can only match one way; the Ethernet wire is RJ-45 not a phone.
If the other end is a router your software setup need is minimized to just actually install the driver and have Windows found the hardware, then you are ready to go. Although for a configuration-free testing use a Linux Live CD to see if you can test browse the Internet.
How in the world did you use broadband on this old computer if you didn't have Ethernet to begin with?
2007-10-01 02:26:10 · answer #2 · answered by Andy T 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes you need an internal Local Area Network (LAN) card that that will connect the other PC to the hub/switch or the router.
Before you install the LAN card make sure that the computer is disconnected from the power source or UPS that is currently running. Plug the LAN card, tip the screw and you are ready to go. Bring back the PC to life, let Windows detect the newly installed hardware and windows will install the necessary driver for the LAN card. If windows cannot detect the LAN card for any reason, try to install it in another slot. -- still finding it hard to install the drivers, try to ask for help from an experienced technician, or if technician is not available at the time, you can go to youtube.com and search some video on how to install a LAN card. Good Luck !!
2007-10-01 02:55:22 · answer #3 · answered by george a 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes you can put an internal ethernet card in the box.
You can also use the USB port on the computer with a usb to ethernet adapter. One of my old computers has this setup at home and its somewhat slower than an internal ethernet card.
But you don't have to get inside the computer to install it ;)
Good Luck,
2007-10-01 02:20:09 · answer #4 · answered by WhereTheBuffaloRoam 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋