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You’ve payed top dollar to get cable at home but now everyone wants to use the computer with the fast Internet and you can’t get on it. What’s the solution? Share of course!
Sharing your cable connection is much easier than you think and pretty soon, with the right hardware or software and a few precautions, everyone in your house will be happily surfing using super-fast broadband – all at the same time.
There are a few different options for sharing a broadband connection and which suits you best depends on two primary considerations: the amount you are willing to spend on setting up a network and your emphasis on privacy and protection. Broadly speaking these can be reviewed as either implementing software or hardware.
Software
For the software option, you can go for Proxy Server or Network Address Translation (NAT). NAT routing software is often built into operating systems (look for Internet Connection Sharing) but for a more comprehensive program, packed full of features, you might want to try purchasing routing software, Winroute, for example.
If you just want to allow web browsing on multiple PCs, then uncomplicated proxy programs like analogX may be a better fit. Proxies simply require you to set up one PC as a gateway for the rest of the network to access the Net.
Hardware
A more stable option, that is a little pricier but still reasonably affordable for most users, a safe and simple way to get set up could be a router. Routers can be used whether you have a local area network (LAN) set up or a wireless connection. With a LAN set up you simply plug the modem and the LAN in and the router takes care of the rest. Routers also have their own protection incorporated and allow you to secure your connection fairly easily.
Precautions
Hackers, malicious programs and unauthorised use of the connection are the three main reasons to take special precautions when sharing a cable connection. The first two will be prevalent in any network and you should regularly update your anti-virus/anti-spam/anti-phishing software to keep on top of new threats. Here routers are especially good at defending your network, so if you have a concern about security a router may be the better option.
The second precaution to consider is that if you have a setup that enables you to share the cable connection with wireless, then it’s possible that other users outside of the intended network will have access to your connection. To avoid unauthorised used, make sure you encrypt your wireless network. To have the highest level of security, set the encryption levels at their maximum (128-bit).
By taking these few relatively simple steps you will be able to both share your Internet connection and maintain the security and privacy of your computer and those of the other members of your household.