I need help with a network in my home.

[Bearjaw]

Hello everyone I need help with setting up my Axim for home network use. I have a linksys wireless router, a desktop running 98SE(wich is where my sync cradle is), and a laptop running XP home. The desktop is hooked up via the ethernet ports and the laptop is hooked up via a linksys PC card. The network works great I just dont know how to set up my pocket PC in the network. I have seen from reading the posts in these forms and others that I have to do certain things. How do I get my Axim to- A) see and share files with the 98 machine B) see and share files with the XP laptop(ad hoc?). If this requires one of those third party apps can someone discribe how to set it up. I downloaded NetUse and couldnt figure out how to use it. Please help. I would appreciate it. Jeff

P.S my PPC has a linksys wcf12 card.

[Sven Johannsen]

One thing that never seems to be clear is that the network share capability of a PPC2002 device (Axim included) is not supported from the cradle. The OS on the device has the ability in the stock explorer to connect to and view network shares without any other add-on, but only if the device is connected via a network connection, RAS, NIC, Wifi; not via cradle Pass-Through.

In the cradle you can get to anything on the Internet, mail, web, etc. You can get to web servers on your Intranet, even if it is running on your connected partner machine. You can even use Terminal Services Client to connect to local or remote servers, or Win XP Pro (even if it is the machine with the cradle), but you cannot get to shared folders on your local intranet. You can only access the files on the PPC from ActiveSync from the PC.

Once connected via a real network connection, you still can't get to the files on your PPC save via ActiveSync on the partner machine(s). The PPC will be able to see shared folders/files on the network. This becomes clearer when you stop and notice there is no way to 'share' a folder on the PPC. When connected to the network in this manner, an active Sync Connection must be initiated from the PPC Active Sync application. It doesn't just happen like cradleing the device. (Assuming you have it set to do that when cradleing)

None of the third party offerrings change that. Not NetUse, not Netrunner, not Resco File Explorer, etc. Those primarily make the process of connecting to and viewing network shares easier, by providing a list of available shares rather than requireing you to type in the share name (\\MyPC\Myshare), and maintaining that "mapped" share between sessions.

[Sven Johannsen]

OK, now that that is over, do you have your network set up so that your Linksys router provides addresses to your PC(s) via DHCP or are you using static addressing?

Since you have a wireless router, you will want to set up the PPC in infrastructure (just like the laptop?) and let it talk to the router/AP, rather than Ad-hoc with laptop. You could do Ad-hoc with the laptop but that would take the laptop out of the rest of the network and just allow comm between it and the PPC.

If DHCP, set the PPC wireless card properties to pick that up. And get a copy of vxUtil and vxIPConfig at www.cam.com (they are priceless; literally; they are free)

Hopefully that will get you started in being able to see the Internet and probably ping the other machines. Then come back and we'll see where you are at.

If you use static addressing. Provide some more info on how things are set up now, so help can be more specific.

If you have no clue what I'm talking about, no sweat, just say so and I and others can start from scratch.

[Bearjaw]

ok so first thank you for the reply. Very informative. My router has set up DHCP addresses for my computer(desktop) and the laptop(my sisters). All I really want to do is be able to stream MP3's and video to the PPC. The veiwing files would be nice.Its not imparative that I actually access the files. I will download Vxutil tonight. Thanks and any suggestions on how to stream video or music? Jeff

[Sven Johannsen]

OK, great. Is the laptop wireless or wired? Just want to know if you've set up the wireless stuff on the router before and got it working :) If so, is WEP turned on? If not, don't...yet. If so, and it is working, we just need to remember to get the key into the PPC, or things will look good but not work.

If you have not turned on the wireless part of the router, do that first and don't worry about WEP...yet. Load the drivers for the PPC card and fire it up. Make sure the card is in infrastructure, the SSID is the same as on the router, you set it for DHCP, and I'll bet you get good signal, if nothing else. If things look good you could try a web site. If you have issues, that is when the utilities become useful. You can check to see if the addresses supplied via DHCP are there and make sense. You can ping the router, or even an internet address.

Better not go into to many IFs right now. Might just work right off the bat. Hope so.

[Bearjaw]

alrighty...My sisters computer is set up wireless. I can get to the internet but I still dont know how to do anything in the intranet. How do I stream things to my PPC. Or better yet can I? I appreciate your help so far. The CF card did everything for me pretty much. Gotta love PnP. Jeff

[Brad Adrian]

How do I stream things to my PPC. Or better yet can I?
On the PCs, you need to enable which drives/folders you want to "share" and provide access to. I know that with WinXP, all you need to do is right-click on the folder in File Explorer and select the share option. Then, on your Pocket PC, when you try to open a network drive, you simply have to type in the full address of the shared folder.

[Sven Johannsen]

alrighty...My sisters computer is set up wireless. I can get to the internet but I still dont know how to do anything in the intranet.

Are we talking on your sisters PC first? Fill us in on the OS(s) involved on the machines. Between the desktop/laptops, it should, as Brad indicated be a matter of sharing folders, and setting permissions appropriately if we are talking Win2K or XP. In Network Neighborhood you should be able to see the workgroup name and be able to drill down to the machine names and the shares on each. If you get a password prompt, enter either the administrator name and PW for the machine you are connecting to, or a valid user name and PW, again for the machine you are attaching to. When you see the files in a directory on a remote machine. double click on to make sure it is working right. Navigate to your MP3s for example and doubleclick. Should open Media Player (or what you have associated).

WinMe is actually the easiest I've found. You put it on a network and open Network Neighboorhood and it presents you with every share it can find.

The PPC is more like 2K or Pro, but it is sometimes tricky to get the connection Manager set up right.

Apologize if you already have everything working on your sis's machine, but let us know if that is actually OK. The concepts for the PPC are similar.

I think streaming may not be the right term here. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong. Streaming requires a streaming server to feed the content to the client in a regulated fashion. You can make that work between the PC and PPC, but you can also just open the file if the network supports it and it will play the MP3 directly. We'll get there.

Oh, looked back at the beginning and the desktop is 98SE and the laptop is XP Home and has the WiFi card. There is a Linksys Router/AP providing DHCP addresses to both. The WAN side of the router is hooked to the ISP, and there is a wire to the 98SE machine from a LAN port, right?

[Bearjaw]

Ok so the driver are installed on the CF card. I can surf the net from the PPC but I cannnot see any shared file on the network. I also cant AS wirelessly. Now what do I do? Jeff

[Sven Johannsen]

OK for starters, only because it seems to work, not because it makes sense.

Go to the Connection Manager ( Settings, connections tab, connections).. You will see three dropdowns. Set them to Work Settings, Work Settings, Work, top to bottom.

Hit modify on either of the Work Settings boxes. Go the Proxy Settings tab and check "This network connects to the Internet". Don't check the uses proxy one unless you know different.

Close all that and give Active Sync a shot (open AS and hit Sync), and try browsing too. See if we got those two working together. If so, then let us know how you want to work on file shares. via the built in file explorer or some third party thing (I personnally like Resco BTW).

[nosmohtac]

Sven,

Does Resco FE allow you to see shared network files without the use of netuse or netrunner? If so, how do you do this?