Speeding up file transfers through IP subnets; The case of the sneaky daughter and the wireless card

* Dr. Internet columnist Steve Blass offers advice on routing requests by hostname using SSL and an Apache server * Help Desk columnist Ron Nutter offers suggestions on how to cure a virus-laden PC

* Speeding up file transfers through IP subnets

By Steve Blass

Q: We want to speed file transfers between a video-editing system that gets its IP address via DHCP and a file server with a dedicated IP address. Will assigning the video-editing station a static IP address on the same subnet as the file server make any difference in the file transfer speed?

A: Yes, it may speed up your file transfers significantly if you place the video-editing system (with a static IP address) and the file server on the same IP subnet.

To read Steve’s resonse in its entirety, please go to: http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2006/012306internet.html?rl

* The case of the sneaky daughter and the wireless card

By Ron Nutter

Q: My 16 year old daughter has wireless Internet access with her notebook computer. My wife and I control the signal by putting the modem on a timer, thus not allowing her to access the Internet after 12:00 am. She’s a high-school student and we want her off the Internet after midnight. However, she’s learned to access other available Wi-Fi signals, so us turning off the modem does no good whatsoever. Other than confiscating her wireless card, is there any way we can keep her off the Internet after her curfew? Is there a way to block incoming signals to our home? Or is there a way to program her computer blocking her access to Wi-Fi other than our secured network?

A: If her notebook computer is running XP Home, one option would be to enable logging in by username. Give her username enough to do what she needs do to but restrict her from making any changes such as selecting alternate access points. Depending on how the wireless card driver is written, this might be enough to prevent her from changing to another access point. This assumes that the SSID of your access point is unique and not running the default used by the manufacturer when it was made.

To read Ron’s response in its entirety, please go to: http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2006/012306nutter.html?rl