Hi All,
I recently had a nice network going at home. The modem router is downstairs with a PC and an eMac on short leads and then one big lead going up stairs to a music studio to serve a G5 and an other PC up there.

The problem was generated when I changed my little Netgear 10mbs hub out for a ebuyer special 10/100mbs hub.

On the Netgear hub the two machines were fine, a little slow and fighting for bandwidth, but fine. But now on the ebuyer one, they can't detect the internet!!!

They can see each other and the LED's (either with the Netgear and / or the ebuyer) full light up and there's a good signal from downstairs.

HELP!!!

Any one got any ideas???


Regards
_____
Meck

Might be the age-old problem of the "Auto detect" property not working properly on the network card. Try setting all of the network cards to 10Mbps (and half-duplex if you have that option) and see if that makes any difference. If it does cure it, then you may be able to put all of the 10/100 cards up to 100Mbps half duplex and, if that works, you might then be able to use full duplex. I don't know how the auto-detect function does its thing but I do know that, in my office of about 50 devices, I rarely get a reliable connection until I manually set the speed.

If you set all the cards to 10Mbps half duplex and that doesn't help your issue, then I'm barking up the wrong tree and the solution lies elsewhere.

Its not due to auto detect as both the machine's see each other fine. They can send and recieve packets of data from each other without any hassle.

Its just they can see past the hub to the downstairs modem router to connect to the internet

I did do some reading into this type of problem the other day and found that hubs can act in two ways -

The first is part of a chain and the information is passes along (i.e. a corporate network) where its relianant on something before it to tell it what to do (a.k.a. a switch or switching hub).

Or secondly as a passer of information where it just passes what ever it get through to what ever is connected to it (i.e. house / private network - a.k.a. a hub)

Apparently no most hubs there is a switch which designates what the hub does, but on my ebuyer special it doesn't, which would suggest that it works pruely as a hub (the second option) only.

Some further documentation on networking is provided by Netgear - http://kbserver.netgear.com/kb_web_files/N100304.asp

So it would seem a switch in nessesary to complete my task


Regards
_____
Meck

I have been thinking on your problem...You have a router/Gateway then a hub? If you do not put the connection on the correct crossover port (I know you shouldnt assume) then the Router is invisible since the wires are crossed from what they should be. In the case of my old Netgear 8port Hub, port 8 was the crossover (port 8 to port 1 on th 2nd hub) In the case of my linksys router its port 5 to port 1. I have 3 3Com switches where the crossover is done via MDX vs MDXI switch on the back of the switch. (Screwed up a segment when I bumped that switch cleaning out my basement one day!)

Hi AphJN,
I was looking into that too. I know manufacters like 3com put there crossover point at the last port, but from what I know most other manufacters make the 1st the crossover.

But I have to admit on closer inspection on my ebuyer special hub, the 1st port has a metal egde all the way around it to try and separate it from the other 4 ports, who have a metal edge around all 4 of them.


Regards
_____
Meck

That would be your crossover for the Ebuyer...now you need to find the crossover point on your router or see if plugging in the long cord to port1 helps...Here at work we have the switches protected from my "bumps" but even the Ciscos have specific ports you have to plug into if you are stacking them.

I'll have a look into that. My modem router is made by Sitecom, so I'll have to knock a few head together over there to get some answers.


Regards
_____
Meck