Windows XP Cookbook

Chapter 12. Network Configuration

Introduction

In this chapter, we’ll cover many of the configuration tasks needed to get a Windows XP system up on the network and how to troubleshoot network issues. Some topics include the configuration of an IP address, configuring DNS, and viewing network activity. For more on wireless networking, see Chapter 14.

Using a Graphical User Interface

The Network Connections applet hasn’t changed significantly since Windows NT, with the exception of adding a few more tabs and buttons. You can do most network configuration tasks with it, but it is not a very efficient or intuitive interface.

For viewing current network activity, we talk about the Sysinternals TCPView (Recipe 12.9) later in the chapter, which is invaluable for troubleshooting network connectivity issues. Get familiar with it if you haven’t already.

Using a Command-Line Interface

Table 12-1 contains all of the command-line tools we use in this chapter.

Table 12-1. Command-line tools used in Chapter 12

Tool	Location	Recipes
devcon	MS KB 311272	12.2
ipconfig	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.1, 12.4, 12.6
linkspeed	Windows Server 2003 Resource Kit	12.12
netdiag	Windows Server 2003 Support Tools	12.11
netsh	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.1, 12.3, 12.5, 12.13
netstat	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.9
netstatp	Sysinternals	12.9
nltest	Windows Server 2003 Support Tools	12.7
ping	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.11
reg	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.7, 12.11
route	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.8
tracert	%SystemRoot%\system32	12.11
wmic