Windows 7: Connection through another comp

Hi everyone, first post!
I have 4 friends coming over tonight and we all want to play a lan game together, however I only have 1 router, which can connect 4 computers together on the network.

However my main computer has 2 Ethernet ports. Can i connect my laptop (also running windows 7) directly into the port and then set up internet through that?

thanks for your prompt replies (hoping)

zottffssen

Z

Just local games?

Ken

Warcraft 3 to be exact, but i need to connect with 5 comps

EDIT: and yes I only need it for local games, but it would be nice to have internet also

Does one machine have 2 nic's or just 2 ethernet ports ( and are you sure both ports are ethernet)

Ken

yes, my main rig has 2 ethernet ports, both of which are interchangeable to connect to the internet. Also I dont know what an nic is sorry

Sorry NIC= network interface card. main rig is decktop?

Ken

Main rig is a desktop, its got 2 integrated ethernet ports, both of which can access the net if i plug it in. I have no extra cards into my PCI slots (other than gfx)

zottffssen; I am sorry this probably won't help you with your immediate plans for gaming, but the simplest solution to you problem is to get a cheap network 'switch' (like $10-15). A switch (better than just a hub) has one incoming network jack and 3 to 5 (or more) outgoing jacks. You take one cable plugged into the router, plug it into the incoming switch jack and you can use the others for your computers. No configuration, no software, all automatic. So your router with 4 jacks loses one (down to three) but the switch adds 4 or 5 more giving you a total of 7 or 8.

Robert