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The
following screen shots and information will help you verify that
the DNS and WINS
servers settings are correct in your EN machine's "Local
Area Connection" network connection. Certain settings were
entered during setup that point the machine to the College of
Ag Sciences network resources. By having these settings at our
standards, your machine is able to connect to our resources. Example:
the Outlook with Exchange mail server.
If you are unfamiliar with this process, consider
reviewing the Additional Terms Explained
section first
You may need to write
down (backup) and then reenter these settings in the following
cases.
- Access to the Internet
from your home or a hotel may require different settings. You
will use the following information to reenter the PSU information
once you return to your office.
- The settings have
been restored to the original, pristine state while troubleshooting
virus/spyware issues. In this case, you will reenter the standard
college settings.
Note:
Home
machines or Non-EN machines that use College resources (Outlook
configured for the College's Exchange server) should avoid using
these DNS and WINS numbers to "point" their computer
to our servers. Instead, you should establish a VPN connection
to Penn State before opening Outlook.
Write
Down (Backup) Your Current Settings
You have several
options for opening the Network Connections window. Step 1 lists
three options.
- Right-click
the My Network Places icon on the desktop and click Properties.
or
Click Start, click Control Panel, and then click
once on Network and Internet Connections. Click
once on Network Connections.
Or
Click Start, click Control Panel, and then Double-click
on Network Connections.
Note: We recommend that you view this folder by Details,
instead of by Icons or by List. This allows you to identify
the correct connection,
- From the
View menu choose Details. Scroll to the LAN
or High-Speed Internet section. You should see listings
similar to the below graphic. Please note, your listings may
be numbered differently. Ex: the "Local Area Connection"
for the Cisco Systems VPN Adapter may be may "Local Area
Connection 3" instead.
KEY POINT #1: These steps assume that you will be selecting
the "Local Area Connection" entry that corresponds
to your wired, Ethernet port on the back of your computer. There
is a simple means of doing this. Have the network connected
when you open the Network Connections window. The entry listed
as "Connected, Firewalled" in the Status column will
be the one you select. Some laptop computers may have an additional
entry if the computer is placed in a "dock" or if
they have a PC card for their network connection. Again, have
the network wire connected. The active connection should be
listed as "Connected, Firewalled" in this window.
This will be the entry you check the settings in.
KEY POINT #2: If you use a "Wireless Network Connection"
from outside the office to access the College Exchange server,
this connection should NOT be given the College's DNS and WINS
entries. If you need to access College Resources from a Wireless
connection (from home or a hotel), you
should establish a VPN connection to Penn State once you have
a network connection.
- Right-click
the Local Area Connection icon and then click Properties.
- Scroll
to the bottom
of the "This connection uses the following items:"
and highlight (select) Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
Then click Properties.
- On the
General tab, write down which Radio buttons are selected.
If you see any numbers, write them down. (See Samples
A, B, and C).
| Sample
A
(Dynamic IP, Dynamic DNS) |
Sample
B (Dynamic
IP with College DNS) |
 |
 |
Sample
C (Static
IP with College DNS) |
|
 |
|
- If your
dialog box appears like the Sample A or Sample B
graphic (the Radio button "Obtain an IP address automatically"
is selected), click the Alternate Configuration
tab as well. Go to Step 7.
If your dialog box appears like the Sample C graphic,
go to Step 8.
- In 99
percent of cases, the Alternate Configuration tab should
be given the Automatic private IP address setting (see
Sample C graphic). It is very unusual for the "User
configured" option (see Sample D graphic) to be
set. But, if you computer has these settings, write them
down. Please note, the DNS and WINS numbers should match
the below sample! If you have other entries, write them down
as a backup. Then edit the settings to match the College Standard
settings.
To return to the General screen, click the General
tab.
| Sample
D
(Alternate Configuration - Automatic) |
Sample
E
(Alternate Configuration - User config) |
 |
 |
- From the
General tab, click the Advanced button. Click
the DNS tab. The below graphic displays how the dialog
box may look. Write down these settings. Note: An example
NOT listed below is an entry without DNS numbers. If you had
a box similar to Sample A above, you will not see DNS numbers
listed.
| Sample
F
(DNS Tab with no VPN) |
Sample
G (DNS
Tab with VPN connected) |
 |
 |
Note: If your Enterprise computer is located in
an Extension office with a Server and a 3COM router, you may
not have any DNS numbers listed. See Sample G. That is fine.
Leave as is. Otherwise, you should have 2 listings:
128.118.124.206, 128.118.93.206.
Note: We have used other entries when setting up EN machines
in the past: 128.118.25.3, 128.118.93.141, 128.118.93.142, 130.203.1.4,
128.118.141.32, 146.186.163.66. If you have the older numbers,
you should remove them. Then, click Add and enter the
new DNS numbers.
Note: It should be a rare circumstance that you would
need to add or change the DNS numbers. Examples that
we have seen....
a) Some county extension offices have reported being unable
to visit non-PSU sites unless their ISP's DNS entries are also
entered here. If your office is in this situation, you should
record these numbers if they exist.
b) Some Hotels want you to use their numbers. In these cases
you would select the Radio button for "Obtain DNS server
address automatically." When you leave the hotel, you would
need to reenter the College numbers.
- All Enterprise
computers should have Append primary and connection specific
DNS suffixes and Append parent suffixes of the primary
DNS suffix entered in the middle section of the DNS tab
(see Sample E).
- If you
are have an active VPN connection on your machine (see Sample
F), the radio button choice will switch and you will see
psu.edu in the Append these DNS suffixes (in order)
section. This is added by VPN itself when it connects.
You do not need to add it manually! Do not write it down.
KEY POINT #3: You should verify that the Append primary
and connection specific DNS suffixes and Append parent
suffixes of the primary DNS suffix are selected in the middle
section of the DNS tab (see Sample E) when your computer
does NOT have a VPN connection. In the past, your computer may
have had agsci.win.psu.edu and
win.psu.edu entries listed in this box. They are no longer
used.
- Click the
WINS tab. Write down these settings. The below graphic
displays how the dialog box may look.
Sample
H (WINS
Tab)
Note: If your Enterprise computer is located in an
Extension office with a Server and a 3COM router, you may not
have a WINS number listed. That is fine. Leave as is.Otherwise,
you should have 1 listing:
128.118.124.207
Note: We have used other entries when setting up EN machines
in the past. Ex: 128.118.155.11, 128.118.155.200, 128.186.157.97,
128.186.157.91 are the older numbers. If you have the
older numbers, you should remove them. Then, click Add
and enter 128.118.124.207 as the new WINS number.
Note: The Enable LMHOSTS lookup checkbox should
be checked. In the NetBios setting section, the Enable
NetBIOS over TCP/IP button should be selected.
- Click OK.
Click OK. Click Close.
- Keep this
information as a backup in case you need to reenter the information.
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Reenter
Standard College Settings
- Right-click
the My Network Places icon on the desktop and click Properties.
Or
Click Start, click Control Panel, and then click
once on Network and Internet Connections. Click
once on Network Connections.
Or
Click Start, click Control Panel, and then Double-click
on Network Connections.
NOTE:
These steps are given for the "Local Area Connection"
entry. You could do them for the "Wireless Network Connection"
or for a "Local Area Connection" entry that corresponds
to a "docked" laptop as well.
- Right-click
the Local Area Connection icon and then click Properties.
- Scroll
to the bottom
of the "This connection uses the following items:"
and highlight (select) Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
Then click Properties.
- On the
General tab, depending on your original settings, select
either (1) Obtain an IP address automatically or (2)
Use the following IP address.
- If you
selected (1), click the Alternate Configuration
tab. If you have information to reenter here, do so. Otherwise,
click the General tab.
If you selected (2), enter the IP address, Subnet
mask, and Default gateway from your backup.
- In the
2nd radio button on the General tab, select either (3)
Obtain DNS server address automatically or (4)
Use the following DNS server addresses.
- If you
selected (3), you don't need to make any changes. Go
to the next step.
If you selected (4), enter the DNS server entries for
the Preferred and Alternate DNS servers so they match the backup
settings. If you are unsure or don't have these written down,
enter these numbers:
Preferred DNS
server: 128.118.124.206
Alternate
DNS server:
128.118.93.206
- Click the
Advanced button. Click the DNS tab. You will see
the Preferred and Alternate DNS
servers already listed. Click the Add button (at the
top of the dialog box).
- Enter the
DNS server address from your backup.
- If you
don't have additional numbers to enter, go to the next step.
If you do, click the Add button again. Enter the number.
Click Add. Repeat until all the DNS numbers are entered.
Note: All Enterprise computer should have Append primary
and connection specific DNS suffixes and Append parent
suffixes of the primary DNS suffix entered in the middle
section. Steps 11 - 13 will help you enter them.
- Click the
Append primary and connection specific DNS suffixes Radio
button.
Click the Append parent suffixes of the primary DNS suffix
check box beneath this setting.
- The DNS
suffix for this connection: should be empty.
The Register this connection's addresses in DNS checkbox
should be checked.
The Use this connection's DNS suffix in DNS registration
checkbox should not be checked.
- Click the
WINS tab.
- If you
see any of the "old" WINS numbers, such as 128.118.155.11,
128.118.155.200, 128.186.157.97, or 128.186.157.91, highlight
each one and click Remove until they are all deleted.
- Click the
Add button. Enter
the WINS addresses from your backup. If you are unsure or don't
have this written down, enter this number: 128.118.124.207
and click Add.
- The Enable
LMHOSTS lookup checkbox should be checked.
- In the
NetBios setting section, click the Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP
button.
- Click OK.
Click OK. Click Close.
Note: Assuming that you are connected with an Ethernet
cable at this point and want to test the settings that you have
restored, continue to the next step. You will be switching the
connection Off and On to put these new settings in place. If
you were performing these steps with the Wireless connection,
you can switch it Off and On in the same manner.
- Right-click
the Local Area Connection icon and click Disable.
- Wait a
moment for the connection to be shut down. Then, Right-click
the Local Area Connection icon and click Enable.
- Test the
connection by opening Internet Explorer.
Note:
At this point, you're finished entering your network
numbers. Below you will find definitions of some of the terms
we used above. They may help you to better understand this technology.
Included in these definitions are some troubleshooting steps
as well.
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Additional
Terms Explained
Ethernet
Cables
These cables will connect your computer or printer to the Hub
or Switch. They use an end called RJ-45.
They look like oversized phone wires. The RJ-45 jack have an eight-pin
connector while the RJ-11 jacks used by phone wires have room
for only 4. These wires are normally yellow or blue in color.
But they may be any color, including black or gray.
LAN or
High-Speed Internet
When you open Windows XP's Network Connections window and view
by Details, you will see several listings. The Local Area Connection
is the default name for the LAN
or High-Speed Internet connection. This is the connection that
you open to check its settings. The below sample uses a Broadcom
driver. Your driver name may be different (ex: 3Com).
If your computer has PSU's VPN client installed, you may
also see a Local Area Connection 2 in the Network Connections
window. This name may be different. This connection will always
have the "Cisco Systems VPN Adapter" as part of its
listing.
If you have a laptop with wireless, you will see a Wireless
Network Connection. The above sample has a 1350 WLAN card.
Yours may be different.
The 1394 Connection is not used, always ignore this
connection. It should always be disabled. Top
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IP Address:
This "address" will be a set of 4 numbers Ex: 128.118.82.100
or 192.168.11.25. Depending on your office, you may be
given a Static or Dynamic IP Address.
Static
IP Address
Static or 'set' IP addresses are assigned to a single device
(computer, printer). If your office is at a Penn State campus
(ex: University Park), your machine will likely have a Static
IP address. One advantage to having a Static address is the
ability to host NetMeeting calls. The disadvantage is the direct
exposure to the Internet and its various security risks.
Dynamic
IP Address (also called DHCP address)
The Dynamic IP address is 'given out' as the name implies, dynamically,
when the device is turned on. The DHCP address may be assigned
by a DHCP server or by a device like a Router. Extension
offices will normally have these addresses.
These IP addresses will normally start with 192.168.x.x.
Other ranges that may be used are 10.x.x.x and 172.16.x.x.
DHCP generated IP Address may change over time. One day you
may have 192.168.22.60 and the next day it could be 192.168.22.62.
Note: If your office uses Dynamic IP Addressing, only
the High Speed Access point device (see below) will have the
Static IP address. In other words, it is the only device directly
exposed to the Internet This helps to make the internal office
network more secure.
Note:
If the network is experiencing problems and the search for a
DHCP server time-outs, Windows XP will assign itself an IP address
in the address range of 169.254.x.x. An address like
this is called an Autoconfiguration IP Address. It indicates
that the device doesn't think that is connected to any network.
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High-Speed
Access via PSU backbone, DSL Modems, or Cable Modems
They are any number of ways that your computer may be connected
to the Internet in the College. These four are the most common.
PSU Backbone:
If you are located on a PSU campus or are in the Allegheny and
Philadelphia Extension offices and there is a problem with Internet
access, you won't be unplugging and plugging in any equipment
during troubleshooting.
DSL
(Digital Subscriber Line) Modem: These devices
are provided by your Internet Service Provider or ISP. When
you think about the "chain" of devices that provide
Internet access, the DSL Modem is the first device from the
wall (or the Internet). If troubleshooting, you will need to
plug-unplug this equipment as part of troubleshooting. Since
this is the first device in the chain, it should be turned back
on FIRST and allowed to start completely.
Cable
Modem: Like DSL, this is another means of getting high-speed
Internet access to your office or home. You will again be provided
with a hardware device from the ISP. This device will also need
plugged and unplugged during troubleshooting. Like the DSL modem,
it should be turned on FIRST and allowed to start completely.
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Routers
Routers are
devices that takes your requests (show me a web page, check my
email) and passes (routes) them onto the Internet via the High-Speed
Access method. Ex: if your office has a DSL modem, the request
for a web page will start at your computer, go through the Router,
then through the DSL modem and out to the Internet. When the page
comes back, it flows through the DSL modem to the Router to the
machine. Netgear and Linksys are two common manufacturers of these
devices that are in use by County Extension offices. This device
will need plugged and unplugged during troubleshooting. It
should be turned on AFTER a DSL or Cable modem.
Hubs and
Switches
A Hub or Switch
are devices that connect devices on a network. Ex: to be able
to print to a network printer, the computer and the printer will
both be connected via a Hub/Switch. Hubs don't process network
traffic. They just connect devices. Switches are better/faster
than Hubs since they allow your machine to send and receive data
at the same time. These devices will need plugged and unplugged
during troubleshooting. They should be turned on LAST - after
the DSL or Cable modem (1st) and the Router (2nd).
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