• Guide to Home Networking
  How to set up your own home network quickly and painlessly.
• Routers and Xbox Live
  Everything you need to know about routers on Xbox Live.
• Diagnosing Xbox Live Connections
  Use the Xbox Dashboard to solveICMP, MTU, and NAT issues.
• Lose the Lag
  We've got a few pointers to help you avoid laggy games and host lag-free ones

Guide to Home Networking

A brief introduction to quickly and easily setting up a home network.

The Basics| Preparation |Step-by-Step

Step-by-Step

Putting together your home network.

1. Make a Plan
   The first thing you want to do when you create your home networking plan is make some important decisions nad ask some serious questions.
   
   
   • How extensive will my network be?
     Are you going to use this network just to share an Internet connection between your PC and your Xbox console, or are you going to link up other PCs or a printer?
     
   • Where do the devices that I want to link together live?
     If you live in a multi-story house with PCs and other devices in several different rooms, the network will obviously need to cover more area.
     
   • How much Ethernet cable do I need?
     You'll want to make careful measurements to determine exactly how much cable to buy. Remember, you'll probably want to run cable along the skirting board at the very least, so don't take measurements from PC to Xbox to router "as the crow flies."
     
   • Cables – do I care enough to hide them?
     The truth is you may not care at the moment—you want to get online and start playing. But in a few weeks, you or maybe someone else in your home will get sick of looking at and stepping over cables, and you'll want to make them a little less noticeable. If you have a small network and your PC and your Xbox console just live on opposite ends of the room, then the easiest thing to do is to use U-shaped staples to run your cables along the skirting board. If your networked devices live in a lot of different rooms, you'll want to run your cables through walls and floors.
     
   • Where do I put the router?
     Where to put the router is pretty important. Here are some things to consider:
     
     
     • Your router should be near your cable or DSL modem.
     • Your router needs to be near a power source.
     • Your router shouldn't live in direct sunlight or too close to a heater.
     • Your router shouldn't live next to radios or fluorescent lights.
     • Your router needs air. Like your Xbox console, it will overheat if it's covered up.
       
       
       
2. Gather the Essentials
   Don't you hate it when you're right in the middle of a project and you realise that you don't have enough of something or you forgot something or you bought the wrong something? Everyone hates that. Make sure you've got everything you need before you begin. Make a detailed shopping list. Do some research before you hit the shops. Consult your plan.
   
   
   • Ethernet cable: How much do you need? You took measurements, right?
   • Router or hub: Buy one that works with Xbox Live. Make sure it's not a wireless router.
   • NIC: Do you need one? If so, make sure your computer doesn't have one already.
     
     
3. Put It All Together
   
   • Follow the Router Connection instructions if you're setting up your home network with a router connection.
   • Follow the Internet Connection Sharing instructions if you're setting up your home network with a Internet Connection Sharing.
     
     
4. Power Up and Play!
   You've done the dirty work, and now it's time for the sweet reward. You should now have everything you need:

So turn on that Xbox (if you're using Internet Connection Sharing, turn on your PC as well), load your Starter Pack disk, and enter the global gaming arena known as Xbox Live!