Blinking Linksys!

[kloff]

Hey all,

I just installed a Linksys EtherFast 10/100 NIC in my computer. I plugged it in to the network here. The Link/Act LED is flickering constantly now. This seems kinda weird. The manual says it is should stay lit and blink when it receives data.

Is something wrong with it? On a related note (or maybe not), in network neighborhood most of the workgroups are "unavailable." There is no way that many workgroups could possibly be unavailable. I can acess some workgroups/computers.

Well, this is somewhat frustrating. Any help would be hugely appreciated.

-Kevin

 

[R0b0tN1k]

The traffic is most likely info that is destined for other computers. On networks using repeaters, or hubs, your computer will receive everything that is broadcasted no matter the destination. It only reads the stuff that is addressed to it and ignores everything that isn't. This is done in the protocol layers which are not related to the status LED's on the NIC, which show everything that is seen on the line.

The other problem seems to be with Windows and its corny networking. Make sure all the needed protocols are installed as they should be. Check some of the other machines to see what they have installed.

 

[kloff]

Hey,

Thanks...good thinking. The hub in my room says repeater on it. It also has a light on it that indicates activity which is constantly lit.

That takes care of that problem. I wish I knew what was wrong with the damn network neighborhood. Almost every workgroup I click on is "not accessible." Almost every workgroup. Some actually work. I'm very confused.

Thanks, if anyone else has any input that would be great!

Kevin

 

[JimmyD]

The workgroup problem is probably due to numerous people on the network using different workgroups. How is this network being organized? Is there an NT Server setup as the Primary Domain Controller or is it all Broadcast, if it's broadcast and you've got more than 5 or so computers on it, things can get ugly and confusing really quick. My suggestion is to have someone set up a NT (or Linux!!) box as a DHCP server and WINS Server, this will streamline the process of computers announcing their presence on the network. To put it in simple terms, instead of each computer yelling across the network every so often that it is on and available, each computer will announce itself to the server (that should always be on) and then ask the server for a list of who else is on. At the very least, try to agree on a workgroup or set number of workgroups for everyone to use.

jay

 

[JimmyD]

The workgroup problem is probably due to numerous people on the network using different workgroups. How is this network being organized? Is there an NT Server setup as the Primary Domain Controller or is it all Broadcast, if it's broadcast and you've got more than 5 or so computers on it, things can get ugly and confusing really quick. My suggestion is to have someone set up a NT (or Linux!!) box as a DHCP server and WINS Server, this will streamline the process of computers announcing their presence on the network. To put it in simple terms, instead of each computer yelling across the network every so often that it is on and available, each computer will announce itself to the server (that should always be on) and then ask the server for a list of who else is on. At the very least, try to agree on a workgroup or set number of workgroups for everyone to use.

jay