Windows XP provides you with a quick and simple way of connecting multiple computers on your home or small office network to the Internet using a single Internet connection. Using Internet Connection Sharing (ICS), you configure one computer on your network with an Internet connection and share the connection amongst your other computers. This is a great feature as it eliminates the need to maintain multiple connections. ICS is very simple to enable and can be done using the Advanced tab from the properties window for the Internet connection. Simply check the box to Allow other network users to connect through this computer’s Internet connection.

Once ICS is enabled on the public interface, the IP address assigned to the private interface (this is the interface connected to the private network) is changed to 192.168.0.1. In order for computers on the private network to access the Internet through the shared connection, they must be configured to obtain an IP address automatically. Once this is complete, the Internet connection should be available to all computers on your private network.

[tags]diana huggins,ics,internet connection sharing,private network,shared network[/tags]