Routers

Adding a Router to Your Network

Most ordinary computer users have probably heard the word "router" but do not actually know what this piece of computer equipment does or for what it is used. Routers are a dedicated hub that manage the networking, internet access and file sharing of more than one computer. Many companies have routers to handle their networking, however, once they reach a certain size then a private server is a better option.

Routers are perfect for home networking applications since they can connect two or more personal computers. If you have an internet connection in your home that you would like to share with more than one computer then you need to get either a hub or a router. You hook your internet connection and all of your computers up to the router so the signal passes through this hub and distributes it evenly to all the computers to which it is connected. Routers are not only used for sharing internet connections but they are also used for file sharing between computers. You can share all the files on your pc with any other computer that is hooked up to the router.

In order to get your router to work you need to first make sure that all the computers in your home have properly functioning network cards. After that you must buy your router and follow the instructions for installing and connecting it. You must also configure your computers to accept file sharing. The best way in which to do this is to add the computers that you want to have networked to your main computer by creating "users" with the same names as the other computers on your network. After that you must go in and select the files that you want to share. You can do this by going into "my computer" and then selecting the files for sharing by highlighting the file you want shared and then clicking on the "sharing" tag. You will then have the option of setting the sharing to "read only" or "full access". "Read only" will allow other users to view the files but not make any changes whereas the "full access" will allow other users to also change any of the shared files.

The other advantage of having a router is that many models act as an external firewall; protecting your computer from all manner of virtual attacks. In all, routers are great little pieces of hardware to have around - regardless of your networking needs.