Troubleshooting network problems
Microsoft has built solid troubleshooting
utilities over the years, and the general tools built into Windows 8
have made the client experience of repairing network
connections straightforward for most users. However, issues outside the
computer, including problems with switching or other hardware, remain
problems for the IT staff to troubleshoot.
To view information about current connections, navigate to the Network and Sharing Center and complete the following steps:
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Open Control Panel by choosing the Settings charm while in the Desktop application.
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Select Network And Internet.
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Select Network And Sharing Center.
Here you will see the current connections in use, the type of each connection, and what type of network it is accessing. The networks available are:
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Home Or Work Network This network type is password-protected and can be more secure than an open or a public network.
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Public Network
This type of network is typically found in public places such as hotel
rooms or coffee shops; access data over this network type at your own
risk.
The sharing of devices and connections in Windows was improved in
Windows 7, and these items have persisted in Windows 8 to provide
easier access to resources and other network-specific items. Two of the
features that stand out are:
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Manage Default Printers
When using a mobile computer, you can make devices on one network,
such as a printer or a shared drive, visible when your computer
connects to that network. These devices become unavailable when that
connection is broken or the computer is moved to another network.
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HomeGroups Computers connected to the same Home network can share resources by connecting to a homegroup.
The group has a password that each member must enter to join. When
joined to the group, shared resources are managed within the homegroup
while a user is on that network.
For example, Joe has a new laptop that is running Windows 8 that he
uses both at work and at home. While he is at work, he is connected to
a corporate network, contoso.local, on which he can see the printers he
can use. When Joe leaves work and connects to his wireless home
network, the printers that were available at the office are no longer
available. In fact, they are not even visible to Joe. This is how
Manage Default Printers works: when a service or device is associated
with a specific network, it will not be visible when disconnected from
that network.
Homegroups work in a similar way but require the network type to be
a home network. When Joe connects to his home network, Windows 8
detects that a homegroup is available for him to access. The files and
printers on the home network are available to him because he is a member of the group.
Creating a location-aware device requires a portable computer or
tablet. To configure these options, complete the following steps:
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Open Devices And Printers by searching for it on the Start screen or by selecting Settings and then Devices And Printers.
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Select any printer that is installed on the computer.
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Select Manage Default Printers.
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Select Change My Default Printer When I Change Networks.
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In the Select Network list, choose a network.
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In the Select Printer list, choose a printer that’s available when it is on the selected network.
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Tap or click Add.
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Repeat steps 5 through 7 for additional networks and printers to set as default.
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Tap or click OK in the Manage Default Printers dialog box when finished.
To create a homegroup, complete the following steps:
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On the Start screen, select the Settings charm.
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Select Change PC Settings.
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On the PC Settings screen, select HomeGroup in the navigation pane
on the left side of the screen. Change the sharing setting for any type
of content you want to share from Off to On. The following content
types are available to share:
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Documents
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Music
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Pictures
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Videos
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Printers And Devices
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Media Devices
When the sharing settings have been configured, decide who is
allowed to join your homegroup. To allow someone into a group, give him
or her the password displayed under Membership on the HomeGroup screen.
Anyone who joins this homegroup will have access to all items enabled
for sharing.
You can belong to only one homegroup. If you want to join another
homegroup, you must leave the group you are currently using. Once you
have done this, you can join another group by completing the following
steps:
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Search for HomeGroup on the Start screen.
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Select Settings.
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Select HomeGroup and tap or click Join Now.
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Type the password for the homegroup and tap or click OK.
If no other homegroups exist when you leave a group, you see the option to create one instead of the option to join one.
