Networking Question

Hi,
I have both an Ethernet card and a wifi card installed on my Toshiba
Tecra 8000 laptop, and they're both connected to my Ethernet Switch/Wifi
Access Point router (Westell VersaLink Model 327W). When I open Internet
Explorer, how does it choose which of those two network connections to
choose? And how can I force it to choose one or the other?

Thanks,
Joey.

"Joey_" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in news:MYDPd.28162$f%5.8239
@trndny03:

> Hi,
> I have both an Ethernet card and a wifi card installed on my Toshiba
> Tecra 8000 laptop, and they're both connected to my Ethernet Switch/Wifi
> Access Point router (Westell VersaLink Model 327W). When I open Internet
> Explorer, how does it choose which of those two network connections to
> choose? And how can I force it to choose one or the other?
>
> Thanks,
> Joey.
>
>
>
>

What are you talking about here? I'll assume you're going to use one other
at any given time. So *Disable* the NIC that you're not using and *Enable*
the NIC that you're going to use with the O/S. Or you unplug the wire from
the wire NIC or *Eject* the wireless card out of the slot.

Duane

Windows will automatically default to the faster of the two -
theoretically.

>From WindowsITPro website:

"In XP, the default interface metric for all network adapters is set to
Automatic, which causes the adapter to use the fastest available
connection. But for some reason, the wireless card installation program
had set the wired interface metric to 1 and left the wireless interface
set to Automatic. This change had the effect of setting the wireless
metric to 0 (although you can't actually set the metric to 0, XP gives
priority to an interface metric set to Automatic over an interface
metric set to 1). The OS uses the lowest-numbered interface (in this
case, the automatically set wireless interface) for all default network
traffic. Resetting the interface metrics for all network adapters to
Automatic returned the default behavior and gave priority to the
fastest network."

I don;t have your model but my Toshiba laptop has a taskbar icon labeled
Network Device Switch and can choose any connection I want & that's waht it
will use. Its prime purpose is for enabling or disabling components of the
laptops internal network - confuses many as the IR is called wireless and
has nothing to do with wifi nor any external pc cards.

"Joey_" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:MYDPd.28162$f%5.8239@trndny03...
> Hi,
> I have both an Ethernet card and a wifi card installed on my Toshiba
> Tecra 8000 laptop, and they're both connected to my Ethernet Switch/Wifi
> Access Point router (Westell VersaLink Model 327W). When I open Internet
> Explorer, how does it choose which of those two network connections to
> choose? And how can I force it to choose one or the other?
>
> Thanks,
> Joey.
>
>
>

"Joey_" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:MYDPd.28162$f%5.8239@trndny03...
> Hi,
> I have both an Ethernet card and a wifi card installed on my
> Toshiba Tecra 8000 laptop, and they're both connected to my Ethernet
> Switch/Wifi Access Point router (Westell VersaLink Model 327W). When
> I open Internet Explorer, how does it choose which of those two
> network connections to choose? And how can I force it to choose one
> or the other?
>
> Thanks,
> Joey.

Toshiba has a program called "configfree" for doing network connections etc
that usually override drivers/control panel etc.. You can set up "profiles"
to force one or another, but they usually come default, with BOTH enabled
and bridged.. If wired is connected it will try and use that, if no wire, it
will try wireless. If you try and do something in the control panel, it is
overridden by the toshiba configfree program.

asosatterdw wrote:
> Windows will automatically default to the faster of the two -
> theoretically.

Ever used a dialup connection while still connected to broadband? You
get sub-56k as your link.

I don't discount that fact at all Roger. My point is in the metrics.
There are many configuration settings that come into play here. For
me, in my experiences with the 100 plus laptops that I manage, when
setting the metrics as described above, Windows does actually choose
the faster of the two.

I'll have to try that theory though Roger. If you connect to broadband
while you're dialed up what happens? Windows is a goofy OS sometimes.