Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P7

Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P7:I still remember when I got my first cordless phone. Suddenly, I didn’thave to run to the kitchen when the phone rang, I just carried the phonewith me. I could make a phone call from wherever I was. Wireless meantfreedom, and this is just a phone that I’m talking about!
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Wireless all- In-One for Dummies- P7Chapter 3: Creating BridgesIn This Chapter✓ Bridging two or more networks✓ Building the bridge with hardware✓ Doing what you wish with a bridgeN o, this isn’t a chapter on civil engineering. And I’m not going to tell you how to build a bridge on the River Kwai, although I may in anupcoming sequel. (Naturally, I’ll be playing William Holden’s part after Ished a few pounds.) Instead, this chapter is about bridging two or morenetworks.Huh? A bridge is software or hardware that connects two or more differentnetworks together.Huh is exactly what I said when I first learned about creating a bridgebetween, say, a wired Ethernet network and a wireless network. What is it?Why do I need it? Is the Big Bang overrated?If all goes well, instead of “Huh?” your response by the end of this chapterwill be “Duh!” These are times when I would want to bridge two or morenetworks: ✦ You’re adding a wireless network and want it to piggyback on an exist- ing wired Ethernet network. The wireless network has access to the same things — hardware and data — as the wired network does. ✦ You want to bridge two wired Ethernet networks. This occurs mostly in business environments, but it could occur in a home, too. The wired networks are physically separated and the most convenient way to con- nect them is by creating a bridge. ✦ You want to extend the range of a wireless network. By bridging two wireless access points, you can expand the signal range without laying any wires.You can use a wireless access point as a bridge, if the access point’s hard-ware is equipped to handle the task. Not all wireless access points can beused as a bridge; it must specifically say it can be used as one.160 Bridging with Windows VistaBridging with Windows Vista Windows Vista makes it easy to create a bridge between two or more net- works connected to the same computer. You need a network adapter, which serves as a communications point between your computer and the network, for each network you want to bridge. If you’re bridging a wired network with a wireless network, your com- puter needs two adapter cards: one for the wired network and one for the wireless network. Creating a bridge Use the following steps to bridge two networks in Windows Vista: 1. Click Start. The Start menu appears. 2. Click Network and Sharing Center; click Manage network connections from the Tasks list. The Network Connections dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 3-1. Be sure not to click Network from the Start menu; it opens the Network page. (I know, it gets confusing!) 3. Select the networks you want to bridge. The networks you select are highlighted. You can select multiple con- nections by holding down the Ctrl key as you click each network.Figure 3-1:NetworkConnectionsdialog box. Bridging with Windows Vista 161 4. Right-click one of the highlighted networks and select Bridge Connections, as shown in Figure 3-2.Figure 3-2:Bridging thenetworksyouselected. Book III Windows Vista bridges the connections, as it indicates with the dialog Chapter 3 box shown in Figure 3-3. Creating BridgesFigure 3-3:Windowsbridging theconnec-tions. The network connections are bridged, as shown in Figure 3-4.162 Bridging with Windows VistaFigure 3-4:Thesebridgesaren’tburning. Adding a network to a bridge You can easily add a network to an existing network bridge. Just follow these steps: 1. Click Start. The Start menu appears. 2. Click Network and Sharing Center; click Manage network connections from the Tasks list. The Network Connections dialog box appears. 3. Right-click the network you want to add to the bridge and select Add to Bridge. Windows Vista adds the network to the bridge. The Status column in the Network Connections column shows Bridged once the network has been added to the bridge, and it also appears in the Network Bridge section of the page. Removing a network from a bridge Maybe you’ve added a bridge by mistake, or maybe you’re ready to burn a bridge or two. Follow these steps to get rid of a network from a bridge: 1. Click Start. The Start menu appears. Bridging with Windows Vista 163 2. Click Network and Sharing Center; click Manage network connections from the Tasks list. The Network Connections dialog box appears. 3. Right-click the network you want to remove from the network and select Remove from Bridge, as shown in Figure 3-5. Windows Vista removes the network from the bridge.Figure 3-5:Removing Book IIIa network Chapter 3from abridge. ...