TCP/IP networking, general windows networking etc

[Steadders]

Ok, I've recently started my first real job in IT, as a trainee technician (its the company i did work experience for a few years ago at school) and this is a great opportunity for me, considering i haven't even left college yet and so i have no real qualifications in IT.

Anyway, my boss wants me to research and learn about general TCP/IP and networking. Networking is not a strong point of mine, as the hight of my experience is this:

http://img55.exs.cx/img55/3350/wizrd5gx.jpg

I don't know where to start, well, i do know where to start actually, and thats here :)

Can anyone help?

[KingDaveRa]

Yes, don't use the networking Wizard :D

It breaks as much as it fixes in my experience.

IMHO, a very good thing to do is a CCNA. I've learned a hell of a lot, and I consider myself pretty knowledgeable on computery things (although I'm sure some people would say otherwise). Either way, you learn a lot.

Also, look at these things from the perspective of other OSes. I've setup networking in some form on Windows 3.11, 95, 98, 98SE, ME, 2000, 2000 server, XP, 2003 server, Netware 5, Netware 6, Netware 6.5, Beos, Linux, MacOS 7/8, OSX, Nutrino RTOS, MSDOS, Solaris, FreeBSD, AmigaOS - all of those have taught me SOMETHING new, so try your hand with as many things as possible.

The hard part is getting the basics. Once you've got a good grasp of them, you can apply them practically anywhere. Since most things use TCP/IP these days, its all universal, although you're likely to encounter some legacy systems running IPX/SPX, NetBEUI et al.

I've yet to come anywhere near to Banyan Vines though :)

[zhardoum]

Easiest place to start is at the beginning..

In other words, learn the basics, and then everything else will fall in place, to whit..

Learn, understand and be able to demonstrate the following..

What is a MAC Address ?
What is a TCP/IP address..?

What is the difference between a MAC address and a TCP/IP address?.

What is a UDP address?
How does a TCP/IP address differ from a UDP address?.

What does D.H.CP. do?
how is it different from a static IP address?.
What does D.H.C.P. Stand for?
How does D.H.C.P Work?

What is a gateway?
What is a router?

What does D.N.S stand for?
Why do we need D.N.S?
What are commonly used D.N.S Server Ips..

How do you add a static Ip to a network card
how do you add dhcp to a network card
Where do you get the network cards mac address?
how do you add the defualt gateway to a network card
where do you enter the primary & secondary DNS.

Lastly.
What is a workgroup?
What is a domain?

What are the differences between a domain and a Workgroup?


get the above learnt by rote. understand and be able to show people you understand, try and explain it to your mother / father. If you can get them to understand it, using as simple terms as you can, then it can safetly be said that you know it.

The above wont get you through a MSCE or even past a job interview test, but it is the building blocks of networks. If you can fully understand the above then you will be in the right place to build onto it.

[KingDaveRa]

Remember though, MCSE networking (from what I saw) is very MS biased - that's not to say the CCNA isn't (a lot of routing is centered around IGRP which is a Cisco proprietrary protocol) but they at least do things based on RFC standards, rather than what the MS developer decided to do.

For example, a 'domain' in MS terminology is the root of the directory service. A domain in DNS speak is a name registration. A domain in OSI layer 2 speak is the local area you can broadcast to.

Lots of things to think about :D

[Zenith]

I agree with KingDaveRa completely about the CCNA. However if you're only after the basics, doing *just* the first semester might be enough of a grounding for you. The first semester of a CCNA covers networking theory and isn't tied down to any particular OS.
You can find out all the information regarding your network connection in Windows 2000/XP by opening a Command prompt (Start > Run > type in CMD > OK) and typing IPCONFIG /ALL
Here is a slightly edited example of my output.Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : zensol
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
DNS Suffix Search List. . . . . . : zenlan

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : zenlan
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 3Com EtherLink XL 10/100 PCI For Com
plete PC Management NIC (3C905C-TX)
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-50-DA-XX-XX-XX
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : XXX.XXX.XXX.1
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : XXX.XXX.XXX.254
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : XXX.XXX.XXX.254
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : XXX.XXX.XXX.254
XXX.XXX.XXX.254
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : 05 March 2005 18:05:37
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : 05 March 2005 20:05:37If you learn these commands for Windows 2000/XP then you will have the tools to pin down many network problems...
ipconfig /all
- shows all info for a connection
ipconfig /release
- frees up your info from a DHCP server
ipconfig /renew
- gets fresh network config from DHCP server
ipconfig /flushdns
- useful if you seem to have problems resolving domain names to IP addresses
arp -a
- gives you the MAC and IP address of computers you've recently connected to.
ping <domain name or IP address>
- sends a number of packets of data to a particular computer and waits for a response. Useful for testing if a connection is up or down.
tracert <domain name or IP address>
- traces how many hops (computers) are between you and the computer you're trying to reach.
nslookup <domain name>
- gives you the IP address for a given domain name

[Steadders]

Thanks a lot guys, been a real help so far, i'll look into CCNA.

and zhardoum, those questions are the kind of things that most people would think they know the answer to, as they sound very basic, but if i actually think about trying to put an answer on paper, its harder than i thought.

for example, if i saw an IP, i would know what it was. But that doesn't mean i know how it works, or why.

Again, thanks a lot so far.

[y-it-earp]

good luck pal i've tried to get into this career myself through a trainging basis

i know quite a fair bit on the subject as i've used it as a hobby for 3 yrs or so

but its quite hard to get into unless you get relevent qualifications

so stick at it buddy

it will be a rewarding career

[Say_Ten]

I read through: ISBN: 0672312107

Get the erreata before reading though. Found it a good way to past the time while travelling on the train and filled in a lot of the basics. I wouldn't worry too much about courses tbh, you are a trainee after all so sounds like your superviser will help you fill in the things you get stuck on.

[MONK]

ISBN: 0672312107

Yep a very good book, sitting somewhere in my house........

Can make your brain explode at times (even more so with a typo here or there) but well worth the effort. Was very good to have read before doing my CCNA but be warned on courses they are "NOT" cheap and may not be good value for money.

In theory you can read it all your self so I would give it a go first, before paying out.

[TimmyNoShoes]

Not the most important of all, but if you need to know networking terminology i have found this website to be rather helpfull.

http://whatis.techtarget.com

[Steadders]

Thanks again guys, i think for now i will be just learning from my supervisor as i go along, and i'll get some books of my own to help. in the future however, the company will most likly pay for any course i need.