Internet Connection Sharing

Internet Connection Sharing may be achieved in a number of ways. Primarily a machine on the network would be delegated to act as the 'gateway' to the internet. It is advisable not to allow users access to this machine for security reasons. This machine would be fitted with some type of interface to connect to the internet:-

Dial-Up (Modem) - Standard 56K Connection

ISDN Terminal Adapter - A Digital dial-up connection to the internet. Normally 64K per channel. Note! Two channels may be used simultaneously giving a connection speed of 128K, depending on your Internet Service Provider. Also, this would result in two call charges, one for each channel.

Cable Modem - Offered by cable operators such as NTL and Cable & Wireless. Normally this would give a connection speed of 512K. The connection to the internet is established when the machine is powered on. Thus avoiding dial-up and log on activity. The added advantage is that this service is charged at a flat rate, no call charges.

ADSL - Offered by BT. This service works very similar in performance to the Cable Modem service. BT install the cable modem on an existing BT analogue line. The installation does not interfere with the normal voice operation of that line. Flat rate, no call charges.

To allow other machines on the network to access the internet some software is required. Some of the more popular software for this type of service are:-

Wingate
Winroute
Microsoft Internet Connection Sharing