Wauzoo
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Slow Network Problem
I'm having a networking problem. Ever since we got the Cable Modem hooked up, the speed of the network to open a file from my wife's PC (Quantex PII 266 w/64 meg of ram & Windows 98SE) accessing the drives my PC (a Dell PIII 733 w/256 meg of ram & Windows ME) slowed down to a crawl. When I click on the Network icon on the Quantex, it takes 5 seconds or longer for her PC to find the computers on the network, when I click on the Dell computer icon it takes around 5 seconds to get to the drive folders, when I click on the C drive folder, it takes 1 1/2 minutes to view the folders on the C drive, and 40 seconds to open a file. It also takes 2 minutes to spool and print using the network. Before the cable modem was installed it took a second or two to do each of these steps.
Before the Cable Modem the two PC's were linked via a 10/100 Linksys hub and we used Microsoft's Home Networking Wizard to set them up as a network. I could enable the Internet Sharing feature using a dialup modem so we both could be on the net at the same time. Both the Internet Sharing and the Network worked great!! Then we connected to the Cable Modem!
We first had the network configured to use my PC, the Dell, as a server with two Ethernet cards. The first two cards we used were older 10/100 Intel cards. The network was too slow to access my PC from hers so we bought two new cards thinking the Intel cards were too old to work correctly and needed Fast Ethernet cards like the 3Com in the Dell was. The new cards are both Linksys Fast 10/100 Ethernet cards. There is a 3Com network card which came with the Dell hooked to the Modem. The other card made by Linksys was hooked to the hub for the network. In the Quantex PC is an identical Linksys Fast 10/100 Ethernet card hooked to the hub. Both PC's have the latest drivers installed on them for the network cards as I went to the home site of Linksys and downloaded and installed them. No change in speed, but the mouse on the Dell would lock up whenever the Quantex was accessing the Internet.
Because of this, we uninstalled the Internet Sharing feature and the Network Neighborhood, reinstalled both of them on each machine. No change, still too slow to be of any use.
The next thing we did was buy a Netgear RT311 Router and remove the Linksys card from the Dell. Now the modem is connected the router, the hub to the router and each PC is connected to the hub. No difference in the network speed, but the mouse doesn't lockup any more and the Internet connection is fast. I'm using TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, and Netbeui is not installed. Also I'm running Norton Internet Security 3.01 on the Dell and the free ZoneAlarm on the Quantex. Both use Norton AntiVirus 2001. Any ideas to speed the network up??
Before the Cable Modem the two PC's were linked via a 10/100 Linksys hub and we used Microsoft's Home Networking Wizard to set them up as a network. I could enable the Internet Sharing feature using a dialup modem so we both could be on the net at the same time. Both the Internet Sharing and the Network worked great!! Then we connected to the Cable Modem!
We first had the network configured to use my PC, the Dell, as a server with two Ethernet cards. The first two cards we used were older 10/100 Intel cards. The network was too slow to access my PC from hers so we bought two new cards thinking the Intel cards were too old to work correctly and needed Fast Ethernet cards like the 3Com in the Dell was. The new cards are both Linksys Fast 10/100 Ethernet cards. There is a 3Com network card which came with the Dell hooked to the Modem. The other card made by Linksys was hooked to the hub for the network. In the Quantex PC is an identical Linksys Fast 10/100 Ethernet card hooked to the hub. Both PC's have the latest drivers installed on them for the network cards as I went to the home site of Linksys and downloaded and installed them. No change in speed, but the mouse on the Dell would lock up whenever the Quantex was accessing the Internet.
Because of this, we uninstalled the Internet Sharing feature and the Network Neighborhood, reinstalled both of them on each machine. No change, still too slow to be of any use.
The next thing we did was buy a Netgear RT311 Router and remove the Linksys card from the Dell. Now the modem is connected the router, the hub to the router and each PC is connected to the hub. No difference in the network speed, but the mouse doesn't lockup any more and the Internet connection is fast. I'm using TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, and Netbeui is not installed. Also I'm running Norton Internet Security 3.01 on the Dell and the free ZoneAlarm on the Quantex. Both use Norton AntiVirus 2001. Any ideas to speed the network up??
Could there be a routing problem? Maybe the internat traffic is being routed out on the internet?
use o.f wires
I got errors similar to yours when I configured my workstations to use my ISP's DNS server. My clients were asking a DNS server on the Internet to resolve the name of a printer on the LAN. Of course, there was never a response, so the computers waited 2 minutes for a reply, then went on to broadcast name resolution and printed.
Check your DNS settings. Or, as stevenlewis suggested, install NetBEUI (since your DNS settings may come from your ISP through DHCP).
Check your DNS settings. Or, as stevenlewis suggested, install NetBEUI (since your DNS settings may come from your ISP through DHCP).
ASKER
stevenlewis, You said "do you have static ip's assigned to the internal network?" How do I assign them, please be specific. Also you said "if so you can try entries to the hosts and lmhosts files" What is an Imhost, where do I find it and how do I "try entries to the hosts and Imhost files"
I do not need the ipx/spx for games, so I have removed them from both PC's, no change. You said "also make sure the bindings are in the same order" Can you explain this further?
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DanR, Could you give me more detail on what to look for in the DNS settings? I'm new at this networking stuff, but am a good student. What is broadcast name resolution? Where do I find it? When I install NetBEUI, do I do anything to set it up? Please explain.
Thanks!
Dave
I do not need the ipx/spx for games, so I have removed them from both PC's, no change. You said "also make sure the bindings are in the same order" Can you explain this further?
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DanR, Could you give me more detail on what to look for in the DNS settings? I'm new at this networking stuff, but am a good student. What is broadcast name resolution? Where do I find it? When I install NetBEUI, do I do anything to set it up? Please explain.
Thanks!
Dave
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
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The best Window 98 Software Router I have used is from http://www.nat32.com/
And it is relatively cheap.
Check them out - download and run their evaluation software.
And it is relatively cheap.
Check them out - download and run their evaluation software.
Paparoti ! Welcome to E-E! Its common courtesy to provide comments unless you know your answer is the only answer and is 300% correct and is what the questioner is looking for and will fix their problem. Please don?t take this personally, (others could let you know before I and not so diplomatically) I made the same mistake when I first arrived and someone was nice enough to point it out to me (It hurt my feelings, but I soon realized its teamwork that?s used here). This accomplishes a couple of things: First: it doesn't lock the question allowing more exposure to other experts allowing a faster fix (many problems require an interactive dialogue to troubleshoot them properly), Secondly: it gives the questioner the option to make an award based on the best comment that helped the most in fixing their problem and it is also is common courtesy to other experts. Again welcome and look forward to working with you in the future, a lot of teamwork is used at this forum, as you will see! :>) Quote shamelessly stolen from Dave, Thanks again Dave
Your answer may be correct, and I hope it is, after all the main goal here is to help the questioner, but when you propose an answer it removes the "accept comment as answer" button thereby robbing the questioner of the choice to choose which expert helped the most. If your comment is chosen by the questioner, you will be awarded the points. Thank you Steve
I will not be making any more comments on this thread until the questioner rejects the proposed answer
Your answer may be correct, and I hope it is, after all the main goal here is to help the questioner, but when you propose an answer it removes the "accept comment as answer" button thereby robbing the questioner of the choice to choose which expert helped the most. If your comment is chosen by the questioner, you will be awarded the points. Thank you Steve
I will not be making any more comments on this thread until the questioner rejects the proposed answer
ASKER
Sorry this took so long to leave a response, but this is summer and I've been busy doing outdoors activities and working on the Network as time allows.
Paparoti, didn't want to use your suggestion as I tried a few software fixes and tweaks suggested by Network Specialists before I came to this support group and they never solved anything. I was then told that it would be better to use hardware to solve a Network problem like I was having. So I bought and installed a Router. Didn't work! Can't return it for a refund so I was determined to get it fixed with the Router.
Paparoti, didn't want to use your suggestion as I tried a few software fixes and tweaks suggested by Network Specialists before I came to this support group and they never solved anything. I was then told that it would be better to use hardware to solve a Network problem like I was having. So I bought and installed a Router. Didn't work! Can't return it for a refund so I was determined to get it fixed with the Router.
ASKER
The problem is resolved. I removed all the dialup adapters, dialup protocols, IPX/SPX & Direct Cable Connection on both PCs and added NetBEUI to both. Checked to make sure Internet Sharing was removed from both PCs. I also used the QUE book on Windows ME for additional help. It went into depth on all the Adapter and Protocol settings and helped me understand what mine should be set to. It also stated that NetBEUI could be used on a home network and how to set it up. It also mentioned that TCP/IP should work for a home network. Using TCP/IP for the network was part of my speed problem. When I changed the Quantex PC running Windows 98SE from the TCP/IP protocol to the NetBEUI protocol, the network came back to the speed it was running before the Cable Modem. After I got the network working, I discovered the reason the printer was slow, it was because the network printer had been removed and was set to use the printer as though the printer was connected to the Quantex PC. It still sent the information to the printer, but was too slow to use. I referred to the ME book and it explained how to set up a network printer. I setup the network printer on the Quantex and it spools and prints just fine.
Thanks for all the help!
Thanks for all the help!
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also suggest adding NetBEUI, to both machines, and unless you need the ipx/spx for games, remove that one. also make sure the bindings are in the same order