Hey IT Guys - Another computer question

Yeah, it is pretty much a given that any new computer these days will be on some sort of home, small business, or corporate network so all have the ability to be networked at some level or another

actually, instead of the optiplex, look at the vostro 430. We have ordered those in the past with great results.

There isn't a lot to customize on them which is why they are pretty cheap.

desktops and workstations | dell,

pick the vostro 430 desktop.

I chose the core i5 processor and 4 gigs of ram.

You might be better off doing this process on line, and then calling a dell rep and ordering on the phone as you usually have more leeway in what you can choose. The only reason I suggest this is you only have 1 option for windows and that is win7 32 bit. With 4 gigs of ram you really want win7 64 bit, and usually by calling a sales rep, they can make that happen for you. Also make sure you pick up a good warranty and that they throw in any other software you might need (you listed quickbooks and office in your first build out sheet you did)

as for networking that really is a question based on what kind of networking gear do you have now?

Do you have any cable/dsl routers? Do you have any switches or hubs (no not the locking kind ;p )?

If not, and you want to network your machines you will need to get atleast a 4 port switch. And some cat5 cable to connect the computers to the switch. Set the pc's where you want, run the cables and plug them into the hub. This is really a 30,000 ft view on how to set up a small network at your office or home, but until you get into the place where the network is being installed it is pretty rough to give definite answers on where to put what, or what kind of network would be best suited for that environment.


Now the other tricky thing: sharing internet to all of your computers via the verizon card.


Because your air card is meant to work on only 1 computer, and it acts like an old school dial up modem (it just dials up the cellular network instead of a phone bank at a local isp) you will have to set up one computer to always be online with the air card dialed up and sharing that internet connection.

It isnt hard to do, it is just a throw back to the old days of sharing dial up connections instead of having a cable / dsl router handle that for you.

I think for now, lets take it 1 step at a time. Get the new machine you want, and the software you need for it, get it at the office/house and get it up and running. Then lets tackle the network after that.
 
I'll check into the vostro and call a rep when I am ready to order. As for the networking it to my exisitng computer it must happen at the same time. The whole idea of this new computer is to add the second terminal to the office as it is killing me only having one terminal. As for equipment that I have for networking I actually have quite a few things but I don't believe anything that I have is compatible with the verizon card. I'll get a list together of what componenets I do have. If I can get the new computer ordered up early next week maybe I can get mm to hook it all up for me when he is down for the IHSFR. Also the office is already wired with cat5 to three different spots.
 
If you have it wired with cat5, that is the hard part right there.

I personally dont know of any networking gear that will allow you to plug a usb modem into and share a connection off of that. Some of the other guys here May, but in my experience, internet connections that run off of dial up networking (like the air card does, atleast my usb720 verizon card does) you will have to have it set up on 1 computer, and then enable the internet connection sharing feature for it (I think it is all of 2 clicks and a check box or something)

as for getting all of the computers to talk to each other, you will probably just have to set each of them up with static ip's and point all of your other computers to the one with the air card as the default gateway. I dont know if win7 will vend dhcp and dns with internet connection sharing. I have not used internet connection sharing since xp was new. I doubt it does though. (dhcp is the protocall that issues each new piece of hardware an address on the network. And dns is what resolves names like google Into an ip address)


you have my number so if at any point you guys get stuck or want to bounce questions off me, just give me a ring!
 
Thanks for the on phone help aaron. So this is what I got picked out:

vostro 430 mini tower - 64bit
date & time: September 23, 2010 5:40 pm cst

system components

vostro 430 mini tower - 64bit qty 1
vostro 430 mini tower, genuine windows® 7 home premium, with media, 64-bit, english unit price $1,522.00
customer spotlight
special offer
- $260.00
catalog number: 4 bv1s176d
module description show details
vostro 430 vostro 430 mini tower
operating system genuine windows® 7 home premium, with media, 64-bit, english
processor intel® core™ i5-650 w/vt (3.20ghz 4mb l2 cache)
memory 4gb dual channel ddr3 sdram 1333mhz - 2dimms
keyboard dell quietkey keyboard and dell usb optical mouse
monitors dell 20 inch widescreen e2011h flat panel display
video card 512mb nvidia® geforce® g310 (dvi + vga + hdmi)
hard drive 500gb serial ata hard drive (7200rpm) w/databurst cache™
media card reader no dell 19-in-1 media card reader selected
mouse mouse included in bluetooth selection
network interface integrated pcie 10/100/1000
modem and wireless no modem option
adobe software adobe acrobat reader
optical drive single drive: 16x dvd-rom drive
sound integrated 5.1 channel audio
speakers dell ax210 usb stereo speakers
documentation and power management vostro 430 documents and 110 volt power setting
productivity software microsoft® office starter 2010
security software no pre-installed anti-virus/security software
dell energy smart dell energy smart enabled
resource dvd resource cd and dvd contains diagnostics and driver for dell vostro systems
limited warranty, services and support 3 year prosupport for end users and 3 year nbd on-site service
installation basic client installation services of a desktop or laptop plus setup of a wireless network qty 1
complete care 3 year completecare accidental damage protection
warranty extension notice warranty extension notice – ensure coverage with notification when your warranty is about to expire
purchse intent purchase is not intended for resale
quick reference guide vostro system quick reference guide
firewire no ieee 1394a adapter selected
software for your dell
quickbooks pro 2010 - 3-user qty 1
dell part# a3111871 unit price $399.99
manufacturer part# 410971
dell part# a3111871
total: $1,661.99

included in the price is installation which is $200 of it. Depending on what I actually get for this $200 I May drop it. Let me know what you think.
 
Jeff has a box with everything included to do a wired lan that I left there a year ago. It's a new second system I already had here that I no longer needed after installing wireless. All my stuff is running through a dedicated distribution system in a wall panel I installed when I built and wired the house here for being a future "smart" operation. And every lan drop is redundant with two cable runs in every drop for the future (same for dual coax for other distributed needs).

A year ago, verizon only offered the type of cellular access point that Jeff has and just upgraded. He had no choice. Today...everything has changed but he's locked in on contract.

I just placed a droid x phone in service on a verizon signal in the last few days (after 15 years I'm completely done with at&t), still learning the ends and outs of linux and android. This one serves as a wireless router for up to five devices so the connection can be shared, on a 3g service it's performance is astoundingly fast compared to even my current dsl service which is the fastest wireline qwest can provide here.

I have a few extra wireless g radios I'll bring down with me if needed, but we can run your current aircard service side-by-side with my droid and see what performance differences are. The drawback to the droid x phone...no antenna jack....no doubt that made the big difference for ya last week!

Now...if we could get the verizon wireless card to feed the wired lan router and switch I gave ya, that would be the best of both worlds. Even better...having the verizon connection distributed through that wireless g gateway that I suppose is still down in Loomis if Mom and pop aren't using it.

I'll bring the lan tool set and testers with me again this trip in case we need to make up any more cable...but I have tons of pre-made lan cables in several lengths here now.

I already had a pending order for the verizon mifi 2200 in process when the droid x was finally released (shipped overnight) as I was going to run both a cellular hotspot alongside the phone:

verizon wireless - mobile broadband - products

But after researching this situation and holding off two weeks, all hell broke loose with the latest stuff (cell phones) and technology has pushed way out there as compared to a few weeks ago.

I do know...that given current tech...running more than one device off a cell hotspot does slow it down some and eats the battery so it needs to be plugged in continuously. Sprint has launched 4g service in a very few major cities, the rest of the world is a long way away from seeing 4g service generally available, in fact...verizon May not have 3g running there in Grass Valley?? We do have 3g here in leaburg if ya find the sweet spot to stand still in.
 
The only air card I have is the usb720 whichi s older. But as far as I know, you cant feed the wireless routers with the air card. Now the mifi spot might be different.


Because the air card runs off of dial up networking you will have to set this up such that you have 1 desktop that feeds the rest of computers on the network.

Set up one pc as the gateway, you will need to set it up with a static ip address. Generally you will set it up as

192.168.0.1
255.255.255.0 subnet

then enable the inernet connection sharing

then you can point the other clients on the network to the one that has the air card connected to it.

192.168.0.2
255.255.255.0 subnet
192.168.0.1 gateway

192.168.0.1 primary dns

192.168.0.3
255.255.255.0 subnet
192.168.0.1 gateway

192.168.0.1 primary dns

normally you would have your cable router's dhcp take care of all of this, but normally your cable or dsl router has internet fed to it. But since your internet is fed to a computer instead of the cable or dsl router the easiest way to make it happen is to just staticly assign the ip addresses, subnets, gateways, and dns.


As mm stated, the mifi hotspot might be the better way to go as I am sure it has a dhcp service running on it already and the hotspot would behave just like any other wireless access point
 
Aaron - how does my computer selection look?

Michael - if I can get my shit together and get this ordered up and here in time maybe one evening after hours when you are down here we can get this all hooked up? Actually most could get installed during the day but the quickbooks update and networking the two computers would need to be done after hours.
 
korllach said:
the only air card I have is the usb720 whichi s older. But as far as I know, you cant feed the wireless routers with the air card. Now the mifi spot might be different.


Because the air card runs off of dial up networking you will have to set this up such that you have 1 desktop that feeds the rest of computers on the network.

Set up one pc as the gateway, you will need to set it up with a static ip address. Generally you will set it up as

192.168.0.1
255.255.255.0 subnet

then enable the inernet connection sharing

then you can point the other clients on the network to the one that has the air card connected to it.

192.168.0.2
255.255.255.0 subnet
192.168.0.1 gateway

192.168.0.1 primary dns

192.168.0.3
255.255.255.0 subnet
192.168.0.1 gateway

192.168.0.1 primary dns

normally you would have your cable router's dhcp take care of all of this, but normally your cable or dsl router has internet fed to it. But since your internet is fed to a computer instead of the cable or dsl router the easiest way to make it happen is to just staticly assign the ip addresses, subnets, gateways, and dns.


As mm stated, the mifi hotspot might be the better way to go as I am sure it has a dhcp service running on it already and the hotspot would behave just like any other wireless access point
Click to expand...

I fully agree with ya aaron about sharing a cellular connection! I've been trying to make that happen for over a year scruuin' around with different configs and it just won't work. But the mifi deal is a huge leap forward tek-wise in the last six months or so. I'm really anxious to see if we can get this solution up, both for ihon office operations and for our own use here at the shophouse!

In markets that have access to a 4g signal, this would allow cutting the tether to a dsl wireline for good. But in the rural areas like ihon and us are in, I don't see that ever being feasible until the technology changes again. The main stumbling block is the cellular carrier which all of us are locked into.

A few years ago, at&t was the kingpin in the cellular data bizz and I would have never considered leaving them. But in the last year they have fallen way behind in system build-out and here in the valley where we are located, my loss of at&t cellular service in the last 6 months has become a huge issue and impacts my ability to do bizz. And verizon has certainly taken advantage of that by rolling out "branded" products and services that eat at&t lunch. At&t will always be playing catch-up since they have only recently added tethering to some iphone variations and their change in costs to the customer for that service has left verizon appearing like a real bargain! I've been tethering nokia phones on at&t for many years now, it's always been a buggy process each time a connection was needed/made, whether using bluetooth or a usb cable. This verizon/android tether shit is painless and near instant and fast (relatively speaking)!

Anyway...I know Jeff and I will be ringing your bell when we work on getting all the new schnizz working! I have the "lan tool bag" packed in the trailer now so we can definitely work on the communications upgrade afterhours while I'm down there! I'll have two laptops with me also and we'll play with the network shit too.
 
It's a done deal! New computer is on the way as well as a new dell printer. So I called dell this morning and after getting kicked around what I would assume was india I finally got connected back into the states. I informed austin as to what I was interested in buying, he then asked me a few questions and then decided a 980 optiplex would be a better fit as the vostro would be a step down in quality from my existing dimension 5150. So here is what I purchased:

1 224-7543 optiplex 980 minitower base standard psu
1 317-3682 optiplex 980, intel core i5 dual core processor 660 with vt (3.33ghz, 4m)
1 317-3673 4gb,non-ecc,1333mhz ddr3,2x2gb,dell optiplex 980
1 330-1989 dell quietkey keyboard, no hot keys, no palmrest, english, optiplex
1 320-8240 dell e series e2210h, widescreen, 22in viewable image size, vga/ dvi, client/ent
1 320-8859 512mb ati radeon hd 4550 w/ single dp & single dvi, full height, optiplex
1 342-1386 1tb 7,200 rpm 3.5" sata, 3.0gb/s hard drive with ncq and 16mb cache, optiplex 980/780
1 468-6054 windows 7 professional, no media, 64-bit, optiplex, english
1 330-6228 windows 7 label, optiplex, fixed precision, vostro desktop
1 330-9458 dell ms111 usb optical mouse,optiplex and fixed precision
1 330-7586 no out-of-band systems management,dell optiplex 980
1 313-8645 16x dvd+/-rw sata,data only,dell optiplex desktop or minitower
1 421-1190 roxio creator dell edition 10.3, no media, dell rlob
1 421-0537 cyberlink power dvd 8.3, no media, dell relationship lob
1 311-9539 no eco kit option,dell optiplex 980
1 313-6742 dell ax510pa black stereo speaker bar flat panel displaydell optiplex/precision
1 313-9127 optiplex 980 minitower standard power supply
1 421-7878 dell control point for optiplex 380/580/980
1 330-1710 documentation,english,dell optiplex
1 330-1711 power cord,125v,2m,c13,dell optiplex
1 341-8036 no raid, dell optiplex
1 330-4817 dell energy smart power management settings enabled optiplex
1 421-2543 no dell optiplex on,optiplex 980
1 313-3673 no resource dvd for dell optiplex, latitude, precision
1 410-0329 trend micro worry free business services,mui,30 day,dell optiplex, precision and latitude
1 310-6719 chassis intrusion switch, delloptiplex
1 310-9444 no quick reference guide,dell optiplex
1 330-2029 shipping material for system minitower,dell optiplex 960
1 330-7587 mainstream processor heat sink,dell optiplex 980 minitower
1 468-7403 for complete functionality of office 2010 purchase your product key card at www.dell.com/business/pkc
1 468-7439 microsoft office starter 2010,optiplex,precision and latitude
1 908-7498 dell hardware limited warranty plus onsite service extended year(s)
1 908-7567 dell hardware limited warranty plus onsite service initial year
1 922-1712 prosupport for end users: next business day parts and labor onsite response 2 year extended
1 925-2650 prosupport for end users: next business day parts and labor onsite response initial year
1 989-3449 thank you choosing dell prosupport. For tech support, visit http://support.dell.com/prosupport Or call 1-866-516-3115
1 983-9992 prosupport for end users: 7x24 technical support and assistance for end-users, 2 year extended
1 984-6630 prosupport for end users: 7x24 technical support and assistance for end-users, initial
1 900-9987 standard on-site installation declined
1 984-0112 completecare accidental damageprotection, 3 year
1 988-7689 info, complete care
1 330-8889 intel i5 quad desktop sticker
1 600-0040 state environmental fee for display 15 inches, less than 35 inches

I also purchased a new 2010 version of quickbooks. So I should be set here in the next few weeks. Dells financing program was real helpful in making this all happen. The only problem to resolve thus far is internet networking as dell did not offer anything for the verizon aircard. Computer should arrive a day before the rallye so hopefully we can get it installed and running right after the show.
 
That should be a good machine and last quite a while!

As far as internet goes...if it were me I think I would call up hughesnet and order me some satelite internet. A few of our finance folks live way up in the boonies here in id and have 0 cell service and the only other internet is dial up. I had recommended hughes net to our companies controller, since she needed to do work from home and have acres to the vpn. She had 1.5 mb dsl before and said the hughesnet satelite was 1000x better.

I was hesitant to recommend satelite for 2 reasons

1. You used to only be able to download. You had to use a modem to dial up and have any upload. If you wanted to upload and download you needed 2 separate dishes to transmit.

2. When I was in the stan I and a few buddies dropped a few grand on a satelite internet system with some shady polish company. Hardware/setup issues aside ( we had a bad transmitter on our dish) the latency was terrible. Between 1000 and 6000ms ping response times. Or a 1-6 second delay.
There were several reasons this was bad... Most of which was location.

But, the reviews I have had from people who have the hughes net system are super happy with it.

I am not sure exactly what your contract with verizon is but I personally could live with having the air card and the satelite and justify the air card by saying it gets used enough at trade shows and such.
 
Jeff, is the verizon air card you currently have a pcmcia card that slides into the pcmcia slot on the laptop? Or is it a usb port dongle?

If it'sa pcmcia card...I May have an external card adapter I used to use with an iomega zip 100 optical drive and a io clik drive. I have the clik drive in front of me but haven't located the dock for it yet. The clik drive is identical to a pcmcia card in configuration and I know that the adapter will read other pc cards. This is the forerunner to sd and cf cards (and memory stick).

Aaron...do you think an external pcmcia card adapter connected through usb would read the air card and provide the cellular connection for the new desktop unit? If I can't locate mine, I know we can find one dirt cheep down at fry's in sacto.

If it's a usb dongle then I'd think it would work in the desktop just as it does in the laptop. I don't believe verizon supplies the pc card version any longer though it's obviously supported since the service there at ihon was upgraded a few weeks ago.

I'll keep digging for the parts, I just quit using the clik drive and similar shit a few years ago. Laptops dropped the legacy pcmcia slots about three years ago. The clik drives will certainly be collectible in the future...just not in my lifetime!

I'm also still a superfan of minidisc...far superior sound quality to any of this compressed "mpwhatever" shit! I have a huge collection of minidisc and it all plays through a hybrid amp from the 70's in the shop.
 
Yeah a pcmcia or express card slot to usb adapter should be plug and play. Having dealt with verizon and having lots of air cards with our company, you have to specifically ask for a pcmcia or express data card. Otherwise they default you to usb. The hardware is cheaper and you have less training issues. (everyone knows how to plug in usb, but pcmcia or express slots get dicey for folks who have never used one)

chances are it is usb. As for the difference between desktop and laptop there is no difference. Windows will detect the device and prompt you to load drivers. The newer air cards have a little flash memory chips which contain drivers and software, which I am not sure why they had never done that before?!

Oh man, I miss having fry's I would always stop in wilsonville on my way home from sou! Boise needs a fry's!
 
ihojeff said:
my verizon aircard is usb.
Click to expand...

Being a usb aircard makes this much easier! Just plug it right into the proper port on the new box.

Then we can play with networking the lan drops/locations you have there now into a network using the extra computers (yours and mine and get that configured for the future.

As far as sharing the single I-net connection point provided by the aircard on what is going to be your server (the new box)...I don't know, we'll most likely need aaron's help for that if it turns out to be possible.

Then...we'll set up all the various computers to share the wifi hotspot on my verizon droid x (that is a totally separate setup) to verify the functionality of the droid to serve as the access point without slowing it down too much...if that works, then that means that when the contract comes up for renewal, you could go with the verizon mifi module connected to the antenna (instead of the current single user/single access point aircard) and then that would allow I-net access to all boxes within range that are wifi-equipped.
 
I am only phone call away :d

I would also look int pricing for the hughesnet service I recommended earlier. Anymore it is no different than direct tv or having dsl/cable.
 
korllach said:
I am only phone call away :d

I would also look int pricing for the hughesnet service I recommended earlier. Anymore it is no different than direct tv or having dsl/cable.
Click to expand...

Not speaking for Jeff...but I know when we discussed the most financially sound methodology to get I-net service at the Grass Valley location, we looked at all the current technical options for this. And that was a bit more than a year ago.

The directv/hughesnet deal was in the works, and we realized that dtv/hughes was out of the question at the time based upon initiial installation and ongoing monthly nut. I also was ready to go with direc/hughes and even wired my house for it, then at the last minute qwest made dsl available in our area so I jumped that direction of course. I have thousands invested in coax/infrastructure/drops/etc. A dish location, etc. That is now redundant,...and the directv receiver and the big screen have not been even turned on in nearly a year as I have no use for "television" per se. My biggest issue...I have about a five square foot point on the ground where the directv dish can be mounted in the back of the property and receive a signal, and that is out of 2.5 acres to chose from, including the peak of the third floor roof of the house!

While the monthly nut for satellite I-net has come way down in the four years since I prepped for it's install, it's still not financially feasible for us...and in fact, the next upgrade in cell service here in the valley will make the mifi deal doable here and eliminate dsl and any wireline service all together.

Jeff and norma's sitch there at the gv location is the same as ours, except they don't have available dsl and prolly never will. And at the time wild blue was not accepting any new customers as they had totally bungled the launch of their system due to overwhelming demand for a service they had no way of providing even in the long term.

The verizon deal in Grass Valley was the only financially feasible workaround at the time, and especially in light of the need for upgraded phones for the family, etc. So it made sense to go with a bundled service which included the aircard. Since we used at&t and their coverage and service at the ihon location is non-existant, then neither kathy nor I was able to work from our trailer while parked there, we had to go down to the original ihon location in Loomis and then tap into the wifi network that was installed there.

Now that all ihon operations are functional at Grass Valley, then it's imperative that I-net service be there that we can all use when we visit. One of the overriding factors that pushed me into going with verizon is the fact that they have a robust signal at the ihon location for both voice service and a data connection.

And...I bet that verizon could be coerced into upgrading the ihon account to a mifi hotspot if pushed! But we're gonna see if that is feasible first as far as service goes before considering that.
 
I was reading up on the new verizon network / iphone launch slated for jan and their 4g lte network is supposed to support 5-12mb down and 2-5mb up. So I think if you can hang with the current 3g cdma service until the new 4g lte gsm service drops you will be sitting pretty!
 
korllach said:
I was reading up on the new verizon network / iphone launch slated for jan and their 4g lte network is supposed to support 5-12mb down and 2-5mb up. So I think if you can hang with the current 3g cdma service until the new 4g lte gsm service drops you will be sitting pretty!
Click to expand...

Yep! I also had an ulterior motive for converting to verizon now...but I don't expect to see 4g in my market, I'm 20 miles east of springfield. And the 3g service out of at&t I really think has been the root of all my emerging problems over the last several months. But the verizon stuff kicks ass (at least right now it does!!)

same for the newly launched and heavily pimped "clear" shit from clearwire. They are spending big marketing bucks to promote that locally...but the service is actually only barely functional within a very small radius in eugene and I'm sure since they are a very "secondary" service leasing space on networks, they will never cover rural markets at all...smoke and mirrors marketing!

Thanks for all your insight regarding this comm stuff, it sure helps to have a pro on your side instead of "help desk smoke blow"!
 
Clear has a huge presence in boise. Back when they were clearwire their service was horrible... Now that they run 4g it is better, but it would still be my last choice as far as internet service goes.

With as much help as you guys have given me and continue to give me with my ole rusty junk, I feel I owe it to you guys and still do for many moons to come.


I really do enjoy being able to help out with something I know. I have tremendous respect for ihon and the support you guys give us as a community. If this is the way I can give a little bit back, then sign me up!
 
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