Basic Client Connectivity

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When you connect computers running Microsoft® Windows® 2000 Professional to a local area network (LAN), the Windows 2000 operating system detects your network adapter and creates a local area connection for you. It appears, like all other connection types, in the Network and Dial-up Connections folder, which is accessed from Control Panel. By default, a local area connection is the only type of connection that is automatically activated. Dial-up connections are not activated by the system. They require a manual configuration using the Network Connection Wizard located in the Network and Dial-up Connections folder in Control Panel.

Examples of LAN connections include Ethernet, Token Ring, cable modems digital subscriber line (DSL), Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI), IP over ATM, Infrared Data Association (IrDA), wireless, and ATM-emulated LANs. Emulated LANs are based on virtual adapter drivers, such as the LAN Emulation Protocol.

If you make changes to your network, you can modify the settings of an existing local area connection to reflect those changes. These changes can be in the form of:

  • Protocols such as static IP address changes.

  • DNS or WINS configurations.

  • Services.

With the Status dialog box, you can view connection information for a local area connection such as connection duration, speed, amount of data transmitted and received, and the diagnostic tools available for a particular connection. You can also add a status icon for the local area connection in the Windows taskbar.

If you install a new LAN device on your client, the next time you start Windows 2000, a new local area connection icon appears in the Network and Dial-up Connections folder. For laptops, you can add a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) slot, or PC Card network adapter while the computer is on, and the local area connection icon is immediately added to the folder without restarting the computer.

You can configure network components used by your local network connection with the Properties menu option. Network components are the clients, services, and protocols you use to communicate with servers on your network after you are connected to a server. The components you can configure and their functions are as follows:

  • Services, such as file and printer sharing.

  • Protocols, such as Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).

  • Clients, such as Gateway from Microsoft and Client Services for NetWare.

For more information about configuring local area connections properties, see the Windows 2000 Professional Help.

You can configure settings for multiple LAN adapters through the Advanced Settings menu option for the local area connection in the Network and Dial-up Connections folder. Using this option, you can modify the order of adapters that are used by a connection, and the adapter's associated clients, services, and protocols.