How to Cable a Network

A computer router can control a network and share resources.

Many people who set up a network, especially in a home, usually opt for a wireless network but there are disadvantages to wireless networks such as speed and security. You'll have to consider the location of your computers and how many you'll connect to the network before beginning. The cabling part is easy as long as you either have network jacks in your walls or don't mind that the cables will show.

Things You'll Need

• Network cable
• Router
• Switch

Instructions

1. Setup a router near your computer and Internet connection. Plug the router into a wall outlet. Plug your DSL modem, cable modem or other type of Internet connection into the router's Internet port. Do this by plugging a network cable from the cable or other modem into the router.

2. Connect a network cable from each computer's network adapter into an open port on the router.

3. Open a Web browser on one of the computers. Enter the router's IP address and then the user name and password provided in the router information. Make any changes to the network settings at this time. Some Internet providers will require that you to set up a user name and password in the router's connection settings.

4. Plug in a switch into one of the router ports and you can plug more computers into the switch if the router does not have enough connections. If you have network jacks you can plug the computer's network cable into the wall jacks. In this case however, you will need to connect the network box to a switch and connect a network cable from the router directly to a wall jack.

References

• Microsoft: Set up a Wired Network