# connection problems. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 14, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982 "2009-09-14T01:08:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/1 "2009-09-14T01:08:46Z")
My wife bought a notebook computer and wants to be able to go on line at the same time i do. I have a router and a modem. The modem is through AT& T ,my internet provider. When we both log in a yellow triangle comes up saying " I/P conflict with another system on the network" . Then I am off while she is on. I went into Internet Explorer because they have a good connection diagnosis tool. It says the connection is not there and do I want to fix it. Then It says the connection is restored. It lasts for a few seconds and goes back to being disconnected again. What is the fix please? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/2 "2009-09-14T01:13:26Z")
Both of your computers are being assigned the same IP, presumably by the AT&T modem. Your computers should be configured to get their IP from the router instead, which will require configuring your router as a NAT gateway between a private network consisting of your two computers, and the modem. Then the one IP address that your AT&T modem allows will be assigned to the public-facing port on your router, and your computers will get private-network addresses assigned to them. You’ll have to look in your router’s manual to find out how to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/3 "2009-09-14T01:22:24Z")
That sounds like the problem to me, but 99.99% of routers are set this way by default. Did you plug all your devices in to the LAN side of your router perhaps? The modem needs to be on the WAN port. What IP are you getting? If it doesn’t start 192.168, then your router isn’t doing what it should be. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/4 "2009-09-14T02:11:28Z")
This is greek to me. The router was put in by my son some time ago. There is no manual here. But I have a Linksys router that has all it’s connections in the back. How do I access the IP adress. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2009, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/5 "2009-09-14T18:52:28Z")
I looked up on line help. They suggested start run cmd ipconfig ipconfig/release ipconfig/renew That seems to change one of them. Will that work? ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/6 "2009-09-18T04:48:57Z")
What that does is get your PC to re-request an IP address, but that’s already done on system boot so it’s unlikely to resolve any situation there. When you run “ipconfig”, it will print out information regarding your network adapters, including their IPs. Your router has a port marked “WAN”, and a number of others marked “LAN”. What I’m saying is that your wiring should go ```auto PC1- > (LAN side) ROUTER (WAN side) - MODEM PC2- ``` If it goes ```auto PC1- > (LAN side) ROUTER PC2- / / MODEM- ``` then it won’t work properly. ---
**Author:** ![BobArrgh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobarrgh/32/2881_2.png) [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2009, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/7 "2009-09-18T15:12:12Z")
For Linksys routers, the standard IP address for accessing the router is 192.168.1.1. So, if you have a computer connected to the router, go to a browser and enter the following address in the address/URL bar: ``` http://192.168.1.1 ``` If all goes right, you should get a page that says Linksys on it, along with User Name / Password fields. The default user name is either blank or “admin” and the default password is “admin”. If you cannot get in that way, then you can always reset router by holding the Reset button in continuously for 30 seconds, at which point the IP address, user name, and password will be reset to the factory defaults. The Reset button is tiny hole in the back into which you stick a straightened-out paperclip. When you get access to your router, check the DHCP settings. For a DHCP server, you need to set a starting address (typically, something like 192.168.1.50, or something slightly higher than your router’s address), and the number of addresses to hand out (typically, 50). The following page may help with configuring your Linksys router: [http://www.tech-faq.com/setup-linksys-router.shtml](http://www.tech-faq.com/setup-linksys-router.shtml). You might also check the Linksys site ([http://www.linksysbycisco.com](http://www.linksysbycisco.com)) and navigate to the Support tab, and then enter your router model number. There are many useful guides there. Here is what you are trying to accomplish with all this: You typically want your router to serve as the DHCP Server, and your computers need to be configured to “Get an IP address automatically”. They will search for an IP address from the DHCP server (i.e., your router), and the router should give them different addresses. As Nanoda shows, your computers need to be connected to the group of ports on your router (typically numbered 1-4), and then the other port by itself (typically labeled “WAN” or “Internet”) is connected to the modem (… and the modem is connected to the ISP.) From the command prompt (Run \>\> cmd), when you enter “ipconfig”, it will show you the IP address you are using. Doing an “ipconfig /release” will release your computer’s IP address. Doing an “ipconfig /renew” will get a new IP address. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/8 "2009-09-19T01:07:13Z")
> [@Nanoda](#): > > What that does is get your PC to re-request an IP address, but that’s already done on system boot so it’s unlikely to resolve any situation there. > > When you run “ipconfig”, it will print out information regarding your network adapters, including their IPs. > > Your router has a port marked “WAN”, and a number of others marked “LAN”. What I’m saying is that your wiring should go > > ```auto > > PC1- > > (LAN side) ROUTER (WAN side) - MODEM > PC2- > > ``` > > If it goes > > ```auto > > PC1- > > (LAN side) ROUTER > PC2- / > / > MODEM- > > ``` > > then it won’t work properly. The new computer is wireless. In the back of my router there is a yellow area marked off . Then a cable outside that ares. and then the power from the modem in a separate spot. they are not marked wan or lan. I am past the IP conflict now. My network I set up is called linksys. It says it is at 100 percent. Then I go to connect and it says Firefox address not found. The notebook is Linux. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/9 "2009-09-19T02:35:59Z")
The connection icon says linksys signal level is at 100 percent ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2009, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/10 "2009-09-21T01:03:07Z")
i don’t get the IP conflict any more. When I try to get into the laptop, via Firefox .It says address not found. Am I trying to create a LAN network, a wireless network or linksys network or what? When I type in the 192.168.1.1 into the browser, I do not get in. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2009, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connection-problems/509982/11 "2009-09-22T02:03:05Z")
Is the connection problem in the PC or the notebook?