Windows 7 - ICS Issues

I am going to try to explain this as well as I can.

My router died and I needed to have 2 computers online. So my option was to use ICS to connect the second computer to the internet through my main pc.

Here is the setup I am using.

PC1: Main On-Board Gigabit Lan and a PCI NIC (Windows 7)
PC2 On-Board Lan (WinXP)

I run ethernet from PC2 over to the on-board lan on PC1 and then run ethernet from the PCI NIC on PC1 to the cable modem. I enable ICS on the PCI NIC on PC1 and everything is working fine.

Now here is where I have the issue. I decided that I would change the connections. Here is how I configured that:

I run ethernet from PC2 on-board to the PCI NIC on PC1 I then run ethernet from the on-board lan on PC1 to the cable modem.

Now PC2 cannot establish an internet connection. I am running into an invalid IP issue. Now this is what I think is happening or at least what seems to be happening. Windows 7 is treating the connection between the 2 computers as a separate connection all together. Basically even though I have told it to share the internet connection it is not. Instead it wants to identify the connection to PC2 as a connection to the internet. Like a second broadband connection that cannot obtain an IP because it is actually hitting PC2 instead of the internet and a provider that would lease it an IP.

The second PC cannot obtain an IP either because it hits PC1 and the connection does not get passed through to the internet.

I can see packet flow going back and fourth between PC2 and PC1 if I try to access a web page from PC2 however PC never finds the page because the connection stops at PC1.

Does this make any sense to anyone?

I need some help with this because I cannot afford to go pick up a router for a few more months and I need the second machine to be online. Reversing the connections back to how they were is not an option either.

I need some instructions on starting over fresh like setting everything back to default and then moving forward from there.

Hi Corpsecrank,

I know I'm getting to this rather late, so I hope you've managed to clear up the situation since. If not, I wanted to take a shot in the dark- instead of ICS, have you tried bridging your two Local Area Connections?

Cheers,

Walker
Windows Outreach Team

You can try these command lines in the command prompt and see if it fixes anything for you.

ipconfig - Windows Command Line Utility

I'm sure you knew about this setting also in the picture below.

I see that you switched the ports being used on PC1 for internet and ICS.

Your original config had the PCI NIC is the Internet (router) and the Onboard NIC is ICS to PC2.

In the new config you swapped ports. Now the Onboard NIC is Internet (Modem) and the PCI NIC is ICS to PC2.

See the difference?

If you do that you have to tell ICS which port is being shared since you changed it.

Corpsecrank did a pretty solid job of describing the setup, didn't he? Took me a few reads, but I think I get it... although a diagram often helps w/ these complex networking configs. Also, I think we should encourage another bridging vs. ICS experiment! If Corpsecrank is up for it...

Walker
Windows Outreach Team

Yeah,

I drew a diagram based on his description. I like pictures...

Did briding the connections work?

Btw, aren't these the same?

"I run ethernet from PC2 over to the on-board lan on PC1 and then run ethernet from the PCI NIC on PC1 to the cable modem. I enable ICS on the PCI NIC on PC1 and everything is working fine."

"I run ethernet from PC2 on-board to the PCI NIC on PC1 I then run ethernet from the on-board lan on PC1 to the cable modem."

Nope: Look closely. His PC1 has two NIC's: OnBoard and PCI. Draw it out and you'll see what I mean.

doh, i knew i can't type, now i can't read too.

That's why I like pictures...