Setting up a Wireless Network: Desktop to Laptop

Interested in connecting your desktop and laptop systems wirelessly? Whether you are simply sharing a broadband internet connection, transferring files, or playing multiplayer games, you will need to set up a network. This guide will briefly cover the different procedures and devices you will need to get everything up and running.

The main thing you will need is a router to handle the internet connection sharing and provide the wireless connections between the two (or more) computers on your network. A good router for this task is SMC’s SMC2804WBR Barricade wireless router. It supports 802.11b/g standards, includes a built in firewall, supports WEP encryption, and even the stronger-security Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). At approximately $60 for the router, it provides a lot of features for the price. To find out more about this router, check out SMC’s site on it: http://www.smc.com/index.cfm?event=viewProduct&localeCode=EN_USA&cid=5&scid=26&pid=544

Now you will need a way to connect to the router wirelessly. Most newer laptops will have built-in wireless devices, but you will usually need to get a wireless adapter of some kind for your desktop system, if that’s how you’re connecting it. If you need one, look at SMC’s SMC2862W-G USB adapter for about $40: http://www.smc.com/index.cfm?event=viewProduct&localeCode=EN_USA&cid=5&scid=31&pid=585 This will also work for your laptop if it doesn’t already have wireless abilities. If you have your desktop in the same room as the router and cable/ADSL modem, you might as well just use a normal Ethernet cable to connect. This will be easier to set up and cost less.

Once you have the router going and the wireless adapter installed on the system(s), you need to make sure the computer can see the wireless network and properly connects. Use the Windows XP Wireless Wizard (assuming you use XP) or the software supplied with your adapter. See the user manual with the adapter for more information on how to connect to wireless networks.

Next it would be a good idea to secure your wireless network by implementing either WEP or WPA if it’s supported by your hardware. If you use WEP, you will need to set the same key(s) on both the wireless computers and the router. WPA will require some configuration, depending on your hardware. Check the documentation that came with the router for more information on how to configure the settings.

And there you have it, a functioning wireless network between your laptop, desktop, and the internet. Now you can use the internet anywhere in the house (depending on your router’s range), share files between the desktop and laptop, and even play some games with your kids!