[krbmedia]

I have a Windows Workgroup setup with one PC being used as file server (has XP Pro) and had a few questions about making it more efficient.

• Any way to get around the 10 concurrent connections
• Will my Norton firewall limit connections and if so how do I change that
• Will static IPs help for all the PCS
• When I map a network drive, is it faster and more efficient to map it to the IP address of the server or the name
• Any other suggestions for a smoother network experience.

[TerryNet]

* Any way to get around the 10 concurrent connections

Different OS.

* Will my Norton firewall limit connections and if so how do I change that

Yep, that's what firewalls are designed to do; configure it to allow the desired access.

* Will static IPs help for all the PCS

Help what?

* When I map a network drive, is it faster and more efficient to map it to the IP address of the server or the name

I guess the computer saves a few milliseconds by not resolving the name, but the huge majority of the time to map a network drive is your typing/clicking time and maybe browsing the network.

* Any other suggestions for a smoother network experience

.
Smoother than what, and what do you mean by "smooth"?

[krbmedia]

Originally Posted by TerryNet

Different OS.

Can't do that since it has to have certain Windows only programs. However, can you recommend a simple OS for a future server?

Help what?

Make the connections quicker and more responsive, less lag.

Smoother than what, and what do you mean by "smooth"?

Quicker, more responsive with less bottlenecking, than with using DHCP and mapping to the server name.

[JohnWill]

#1. Use a stand-alone NAS box for the file sharing.

#2. Static IP address will do nothing for connection quality, as stated, it might save a tiny amount of time connecting initially.

#3. See answer #2.

[DoubleHelix]

Network performance problems have to do with the network topology and not with dynamic IP addressing and drive mapping methods.

[krbmedia]

Originally Posted by DoubleHelix

Network performance problems have to do with the network topology and not with dynamic IP addressing and drive mapping methods.

Any advice in this area?

[JohnWill]

First, we'd have to know a lot more about the exact network topology of the existing network to attempt to identify any bottlenecks.

[krbmedia]

T1 into a Netgear wireelss G router into a Netgear Gigabit switch.

[krbmedia]

One other question about the following services:

Computer Browser
Distributed Link Tracking Client
TCP/IP NETBIOS helper

Any of them needed in this setup?