getting two computers to work together

[candymom2]

I work in a small office and want two computers working together. do I have to have anything special to do this? we are running windows xp pro.
do the computers have to be connected some way together?

[snowmonkey]

Welcome to this forum with your first post.

When you say you want the two computer to work together, did you mean you want to network them so you could share files / Printer / Internet.....etc between the two OR you want the two computer to Act as one unit ??


Cheers

[ANZAC_ELITE]

You will need a cross over cable from one pc nic (Network Interface card) to the other, then run the XP Network setup wizard. To do this place your XP cd in the cd drive when it auto runs select Perform Additional Tasks then select Set up Home or Small Office Network, follow the directions and all will be good.

[ADDD$%]

START>CONTROL PANNEL>NETWORK AND INTERNET CONNECTIONS>NETWORK SET UP WIZARD but, ur pcs have to be connected by a router though

[plthayer]

You have the steps correct to get to the network setup but you don't have to use a router. As stated above a cross-over cable will work and is much cheaper than a router you probably won't use just to share files.

If you want to use a single internet connection on two or more computers a router is the best way to go, but not just for file sharing.

[ANZAC_ELITE]

You can actually share an internet connection via a crossover lan, the drawback is the gateway pc has to be turned on for the client to gain access to the internet. I missed the internet requirement in the original question (my bad), if independent net access is desired a hub/ router is required.

[plthayer]

Thanks Anzac_Elite, I was just pointing out the fact that a router is best for the ease of use.