XP via Win98's ICS to Internet? Help pls!

[Mac the Knife]

Setup: WinXP-Pro/PC -> network/100mbps switch -> ICS on Win98/PC -> 56K modem -> ISP

Anyone know how I can use Win98's Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) to link young Tomás's XP machine to my ISP via my internet connection? Network runs fine with 4 machines using TCP/IP and NetBEUI(for the WFWG PC, but not bound to the Dial-Up Adapter for security). ICS is correctly installed and working on the Win98 machine with & DHCP assigns TCP/IP (Home)on the ICS adapter an IP address of 192.168.0.1 and 255.255.255.0 subnet mask as it should. Bindings all seem OK and Device Manager says the ICS Adapter is working correctly.

'ow the devil do you persuade XP-Pro to see and use this connection? XP-Pro coughs on the setup disk that Win98 ICS makes for you and says it's for Win95/98 only. The XP Network Setup "Wizards" are too wizardly and I'm only just getting to grips with XP-Pro(half way decent OS from M$ at last). Yes, I know it would probably be easier to use the XP-Pro machine as the gateway (as M$ suggest) but I'd like to get it going this way round if possible.

[18-Wheeler]

Try the wonderful people at Dr Karl's Tech Talk site.
http://www2b.abc.net.au/science/techtalk/

[fobotcso]

One option might be to use third-party software such as Wingate from Deerfield (NZ Company marketed through US:confused: ).

It can be a bit flaky but Version 4.5 is a lot better than when I started. I've used it for several years since NT4 days and have made Win98, WinME and Win2K machines act as Gateways.

Try this link.

Wingate (http://wingate.deerfield.com/)

I'd be interested to know if there are any other software solutions as I'm about to go broadband (when BT pull their fingers out) and I don't know whether Wingate will cope.

[Mac the Knife]

Thanks for suggestions - they all helped. Good site that at http://www2b.abc.net.au/science/techtalk/ 18-Wheeler - ta muchly. Eventually got it sussed and now trying to figure out exactly how. With the network up and running, once the ICS server was correctly set up on the 98SE machine (often a fiddle involving Regedit - see http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q238/1/35.asp ) the XP-Pro eventually seemed to find and use it automatically!

Make sure that in Explorer/Tools/Internet Options/Connections/Local Area Network/Sharing is enabled and has the correct Dial-up Adapter and Network Connection identified (no choices unless you have nore than one NIC or modem)

I also had another modem (and connection) set up on the XP and the XP was using THAT to connect (on another phone line) in preference to the ICS connection in spite of my saying (in Internet Properties/Connections) "Dial whenever a network connection is not present" - I guess that the time that the ICS server take to dialup and connect is just too long for the XP which then gives up and dials the ISP in it's own modem. Somewhere in the Registry there will be a tweak that will make it wait longer before it gives up on the network connection.

Have to say that once M$'s 98/ICS is correctly setup on 98 (non trivial) it has always seemed to work well. Suggest care with AnalogX's "Proxy/Proxyi" (free) proxy server, which is arcane to get working (never succeeded) and once installed is virtually impossible to remove without major Registry restoration/surgery. Fobotcso - thanks, I was just about to try WinGate when ICS started working - sounds good (and free for <3 connections).

As an aside for other 56K/POTS users, by design the ICS client cannot disconnect the ICS server - but if you ever need\want to disconnect remotely then Twiga's Remote Disconnection Utility [which does a few other neat tricks too and is very professional], free from http://www.twiga.ltd.uk/ works very nicely with this setup and is simple to install and configure - they have an updated rduserver.exe file that also recognises connections made with ISDN devices.

[Devils Advocate]

My personal favourite for network problem solving advice is this site: World of Windows Networking (http://www.wown.com)