Dual networks

[itsgrandpa]

I am currently living on campus in a double occupancy room. My roommate and I each have our own router/internet. He upgraded his internet to 10MB/s where I only have ~2MB/s.

I have a p6t deluxe v2 motherboard that supports 2 Gigabit LANs.

Typically, when he is out of the room, I will swap cables for his faster connection. (he doesn't mind)

My question is, is there a way to aggregate my 2MB connection with his 10MB connection?

I want to be able to run my primary connection - and when he leaves, connect his Ethernet to my extra Gigabit ethernet slot and remove it when he arrives.

Thanks guys.

 

[JDFan]

Does his service offer a faster connection ie. 18 - 24Mbs for less than the cost of your 2 services combined ? (usually there is only a small difference in price when upgrading speed vs. having an entire second service) - If yes then why not just share a single connection and get both of you a faster service.
For Example here with Uverse we can get a 3 Mbs service for $38, 12Mbs for $48, 18Mbs for $53, or 24 Mbs for only $63 -- so getting a single 24Mbs service for $63 is much better than paying $86 for 2 separate services that are both slower (12 + 3Mbs) and even if splitting the $63 - Paying $32 a piece is cheaper than what the 3Mbs plan would cost if going with separate services - so you might want to consider switching to a single service and split the cost. (figure it would probably still cost you about the same but would save him some $ and you'd both get faster service while sharing and you'd get even faster service when he was out !

 

[itsgrandpa]

Thanks for the reply. I am living in the dorms, each person has their own router which is the 2MB connection which is free. There is only one upgrade path offered by campus housing, which my roommate shells out $35 per month for the extra bump.

I plan on pitching in the $140 for the next semester, but I can still utilize the extra bandwidth for downloads and video streaming (uploads). Therefore I plan on using both connections in the future regardless.

 

[Catsrules]

In windows as far as I know, you can't combine the speeds, for one thing.
I would look in to a router with dual WAN that will work.
Or you could build your own router with an old computer with 3 network cards and install pfsense on it.

 

[itsgrandpa]

So if I am unable to utilize 2 network streams, what would be the purpose of having 2 ethernet ports on my mobo?

 

[kaa0653]

Here are a few reasons:
Link aggregation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Link_aggregation
Internet connection sharing: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306126
Router: http://www.techrepublic.com/article/configure-windows-server-2003-to-act-as-a-router/5844624

 

[Mfusick]

So if I am unable to utilize 2 network streams, what would be the purpose of having 2 ethernet ports on my mobo?

I would like to know this

 

[ichihaifu]

Its rare to see 2 network ports in normal home PC, usually their purpose lies in server machinery where bridging and double layer networks are common.

 

[Catsrules]

So if I am unable to utilize 2 network streams, what would be the purpose of having 2 ethernet ports on my mobo?

I am guessing most of these purposes won't apply to you, but here are some reasons why you would want two nics
can have access to 2 networks at the same time, for example, I have a production network and a test network. I can communicate with both with out having to disconnect from 1 to talk to the other.
You can also do internet sharing if you don't have a router.
I have has a few nics die of me, and it is nice to have a second one, I can just plug in to.
It is also handy if I need to plug in to 2 devices and I don't have a switch handy.



But back to original question,
The only reason why you cant do this is because your are being limited by your OS.
You maybe able to do some crazy visualization to get around that limitation. I was thinking you could install a virtual pfsence with 3 virtulal nics tie 2 of the nic to each of your physical cards and the third nic connect to your computer. Then have pfsence combine the two networks and share it to your computer. No idea if it would work but it might.

I would try out virtual box, as your visualization program