Networking for Dummies--For Dummies; 7th Ed.

            by Doug Lowe

Networking For Dummies®, 7th Edition 
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc. 111 River Street Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774 
Copyright © 2005 by 
Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana 
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana 

About the Author 

                            Doug Lowe has written a whole bunch of computer books, including more than 35 For Dummies books (such as PowerPoint 2003 For Dummies, Word 2003 All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies, Networking All-In-One Desk Reference For Dummies, and Internet Explorer 6 For Dummies). He lives in that sunny All-American City of Fresno, California, which isn’t nearly as close to San Francisco as most people think, with his wife and two of his daughters (the other one’s away at college). He’s one of those obsessive-compulsive decorating nuts who puts up tens of thousands of lights at Christmas and creates computer-controlled Halloween decorations that rival Disney’s Haunted Mansion. Maybe his next book should be Tacky Holiday Decorations For Dummies. (For pictures, check out his Web site at www.LoweWriter.com.)

Dedication 

                  To Debbie, Rebecca, Sarah, and Bethany.

Author’s Acknowledgments 

                                          The list of thank-yous for this book is long and goes back several years. I’d like to first thank John Kilcullen, David Solomon, Janna Custer, Erik Fafforn, Grag Robertson, and Ray Marshall for all of their help with the first edition. Those who worked on subsequent editions include Tim Gallan, Mary Goodwin, Joe Salmeri, Jennifer Ehrlich, Constance Carlisle, and Jamey L. Marcum, Jeanne S. Criswell, Ted Cains, Jamey L. Marcum, Danna Lesh, Rebekah Mancilla, Becky Huehls, Amy Pettinella, Suzanne Thomas, Garret Pease, and Andrea Boucher. Each of these people made valuable contributions to the content, readability, and accuracy that have paved the way for the current edition.

Now, for the seventh edition, I’d like to thank project editor Christopher Morris, who did a great job overseeing all the editorial work that was required to put this book together. I’d also like to thank Dan DiNicolo, who once again gave the entire manuscript a thorough technical look-through and offered many excellent suggestions, and copy editor Barry Childs-Helton, who maid sure there whir know spelling hair ores. And, as always, thanks to all the behind-the-scenes people who chipped in with help I’m not even aware of.

Oh, and I’d also like to thank Becca Freeman. She didn’t have anything to do with this book, but I thought it would make her happy to see her name in print.

Contents at a Glance

Introduction ................................................................1 

Part I: Getting Started with Networking ........................7 

Chapter 1: Networks Will Not Take Over the World, and Other Network Basics ................................................................................................................9 

Chapter 2: Life on the Network ......................................................................................21 

Chapter 3: Using a Network Printer ..............................................................................33 

Chapter 4: Sharing Your Files and Printers ..................................................................45 

Chapter 5: Mr. McFeeley’s Guide to E-mail ...................................................................51 

Chapter 6: Using Microsoft Office on a Network .........................................................61

Part II: Building Your Own Network ............................67 

Chapter 7: The Bad News: You Have to Plan Ahead ...................................................69 

Chapter 8: Understanding Network Operating Systems ............................................87 

Chapter 9: Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave: Cables, Adapters, and Other Stuff ............................................................................................................103 

Chapter 10: Setting Up a Wireless Network ...............................................................129 

Chapter 11: Configuring Client Computers ................................................................147 

Part III: Network Management For Dummies .............159 

Chapter 12: Help Wanted: Job Description for a Network Administrator ..............161 

Chapter 13: Big Brother’s Guide to Network Security ..............................................173 

Chapter 14: If I Could Save Time in a Bottleneck: Optimizing Your Network’s Performance ..............................................................................................189 

Chapter 15: How to Sleep Well at Night (Or, Backing Up Your Network Data) ......199
Chapter 16: Major Annoyances ...................................................................................213 

Chapter 17: Network Troubleshooting .......................................................................223 

Chapter 18: How to Stay on Top of Your Network and Keep the Users Off Your Back ...............................................................................................................239 

Part IV: Network Operating Systems .........................245 

Chapter 19: Windows Server 2003 ...............................................................................247 

Chapter 20: NetWare 6 and 6.5 .....................................................................................275 

Chapter 21: Using a Linux Server ................................................................................297 

Chapter 22: Macintosh Networking .............................................................................315

Part V: TCP/IP and the Internet ................................321 

Chapter 23: Connecting Your Network to the Internet .............................................323 

Chapter 24: Understanding IP Addresses ...................................................................331 

Chapter 25: Configuring Your Network for DHCP ......................................................345 

Part VI: The Part of Tens ..........................................353 

Chapter 26: Ten Big Network Mistakes .......................................................................355 

Chapter 27: Ten Networking Commandments ...........................................................361 

Chapter 28: Ten Things You Should Keep in Your Closet ........................................365 

Chapter 29: Ten Network Gizmos Only Big Networks Need ....................................369 

Chapter 30: Ten Layers of the OSI Model ...................................................................377 

Index ......................................................................383

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