Switching Networks

Q: I am using a laptop and windows XP home edition. I have a DSL connection for my office use. At home, I have a broadband line.

Currently, when I need to connect to these respective networks, I open ‘my network places’, view network connections, select ‘LAN or high-speed Internet, ‘got to its properties and change the settings for the Internet protocol (TCP/IP) as specified by the service providers, I find this very cumbersome.

Is there a simpler way to switch networks? Please advise me the solution.

A: You can easily switch between networks by using third party tools. Netsetman 2.0 is one such freeware that you can use to quickly switch between five different pre-configured network settings.

The size is 853 KB and it can be installed in Windows 2000 and XP operating systems. You can download it from the following URL: http://www.iljaherlein.de/netsetman/stats/getfile.php?id=1 .

Another useful option that you can enable is ‘Start with window’ which is placed in the information button.

So, once you logon to your system, the Netsetman window appears. Just select the required profile (tab) and click Activate button.

To check your current network settings, click Start à Run à type cmd and click Ok. This will bring up the command prompt. Type “ipconfig/all” which will provide the current network settings – such as IP, subnet, Default Gateway, DNS, etc.