Two computers with one modem from comcast

[sgt8689]

I too have the same problem as many of your members. I have comcast as my ISP, two computers, one modem and a router. All of my connections are correct but when I try to load the software on to my second computer it recognizes my NIC but states that it cannot connect. Do I need a seperate IP address? Where would I find the IP address and it also asks for my MAC. Where would I find this. I am not very good with computers. I used to be an A+ Tech but it's been many years and things have changed so much. I need to pick a better than mine for this one.
Thank you very much in advance.
sgt8689

 

[SizroSpunkmire]

To determine our NICS IP address and MAC address:

start --> run type in: 'cmd'

at the command prompt type in: 'ipconfig /all'

This will display all the settings for each NIC (wired/wifi) presently enabled in your system.

 

[sgt8689]

Thank you for your response. Is there another name for the MAC address? I did what you said and it came up with my configuration but it does not have a MAC address. Would it be "subnet mask"? It also states that IP routing is not enabled.
Thanks again.
sgt8689

 

[SizroSpunkmire]

In ipconfig /all your MAC address is the entry listed after 'Physical Address'

Physical Address. . . . . . . . .: 00-20-B6-6H-0V-D5

^^ example

 

[sgt8689]

Sizro, Listen man I know that you're going to think I am an idiot but I want you to know how much I appreciate your help. Do you know anything about Comcast? Here's the deal. I moved in with my fiancee and she has Comcast. I had compuserve. I asked the people at Comcast how I go about putting Comcast on my computer to share the account and the high speed of DSL with her. They told me it would be cheaper to buy a router and do it myself. I bought a Trendnet router. It came with instructions and it says that I have to configure the router by going to my browser and typing in an http number. I am doing this on my computer which does not have Comcast software on it yet because as I try to load it, it does a LAN check. When it finishes it tells me that the NIC card is fine but there is no connectivity. When I try to configure the router it asks questions about what type of IP connection I have. Static, dynamic etc. I know what they mean but I am not sure which to pick. Dynamic leads to a screen with entries for IP and MAC addresses. Static asks for DNS servers and other things. Should I be trying to configure the router on to the computer that already has the Comcast software installed? I noticed that when I have all of my connections the original computer with the Comcast won't hit the internet either. All NIC cards are good. All show activity and the router shows activity as well. I don't want to screw up my finacee's computer by changing things. Again I am sorry to bother you and I really appreciate you taking the time to help me out.
Thanks Pal
sgt8689

 

[SizroSpunkmire]

Hey no worries, this is a common problem and I'm glad I can help.

The network you're setting up needs two essential things to make it work: An external IP address and an internal IP address scheme. Allow me to explain:

The external IP address is the one that is assigned to your router by your ISP (in this case Comcast). This is the address that all computers that are trying to send you data through the internet send it to. It's up to your router to determine which computer on your network requested that data. When you connect to the router to set it up and it asks you what type of IP address you are using most ISP's use Dynamic. This way, when you switch on your modem and it starts communicating with Comcast they end up setting up all the IP address configuration automatically. Manuel means you would have to set it up yourself. A few ISP's still use this method but not many.

The interal IP scheme is the addresses that are assigned to all the computers inside of your network. Most likely they are 192.168.1.* or 192.168.0.*

I would suggest trying to configure the router on the computer that already has Comcast installed. As long as you don't change any of her settings the worste you can do is misconfigure something on the router.

One thing to worry about: The physical ports on your router and each computer are assigned a MAC address. Many ISP's will LOCK the MAC address of the WAN port on your modem to your internet account. This is more of a security measure then anything else...if they suddenly detect a change in MAC address this *could* mean someone has hijacked your connection. 99% of the time it's simply because the end user has gone out and bought a new route (such as you did).

My suggestion would be to contact Comcast and speak with them. They can walk you over the phone step by step and are usually better then reading the manual

One thing to note: They will probably ask you what the MAC address of your router is. If you turn it upside down there should be a sticker on the bottom that tells you.