How to set up a Home or Small Office Network

It's easier than you think to network your home office or small business. Follow the steps below to set up your business at home, or in a small office.

Things You'll Need

• computer
• internet access
• ethernet cables
• usb cables
• All-in-one-printer, fax, scanner, copier
• wireless router

Instructions

1. 

   Click on Start, My Network Places. Under "Network Tasks" click on "Set up a home or small office network" and this will take you to the Network Setup Wizard. The wizard will help you set up your computer to run on your network where you can: share and internet connection; share files and folders; share a printer.

2. 

   Click next and make sure you have done everything on the "checklist," ie, modems installed, computers and printers turned on, and you are connected to the Internet. Click next and select the way your computer connects to the internet. Click next. Computer description: whatever you want; Computer Name will already be populated. Click next.

3. 

   Select workgroup name, default will be MSHOME, You can call it Home or Office or leave it as is. Click next File and Printer Sharing: turn on, click next. Apply network settings, you'll want to save this info to a notepad or write it down.

4. 

   Click next and you will get "please wait while the wizard configures this computer for home or small office networking." This process will take a few minutes. Run the Network Setup Wizard once on each of the computers on your network. To run the wizard on computers that are not running Windows XP you can use the Windows XP CD or a Network Setup Disk. You will then be asked, "What do you want to do?" You can create a network setup disk. Use the disk you have, use Windows XP CD, or click finish. No need to run wizard on other computers. Click next.

5. 

   "You have successfully set up this computer for home or small office networking." To see other computers on your network, click Start, and then click My Network Places. Click finish, and you will be prompted to restart your computer. Once your computer is restarted you will see your network under "My Network Places" with an icon/picture of a networking cable below the folder.