2,001 Tips
Windows 95
Dial-Up Networking

Turn Win95 into a Remote Access Server

One of the many features included with Microsoft Plus is a Dial-Up Server option. After installing Plus you can enable Dial-Up Server by opening the Dial-Up Network icon, clicking on Connections and choosing Dial-Up Server. Next, set up shares, set your security under Win95 and dial into your own computer.

Run and Dial-Up

Access a Dial-Up configuration from the Run command line by typing

rundll32.exe rnaui.dll,RnaDial <connection_name>.

Create Shortcuts for Popular Connections

It's possible to add shortcuts to frequently used connections by dragging and dropping connections from the Dial-Up Networking folder to your Desktop. But remember, you can't change the properties of shortcuts on your Desktop. You must change the physical properties of the actual connection icon.

Autoredial for Dial-Up Networking

Windows 95 disables autodial in Dial-Up Networking by default. To enable it, click on the Start menu and choose Programs/Accessories/Dial-Up Networking. Click on Connections and choose Settings. Check off Redial and specify how long to wait between redials and how long before Win95 should give up.

Download Without Disconnect

Increase the modem time-out to avoid being disconnected from your ISP. Edit the Registry by typing Regedit from Run in the Start menu. Go to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE /System/CurrentControlSet/Services/Class/Modem/XXXX/Settings. XXXX is the modem number (it usually starts with 0000). Move down to Inactivity Timeout and double-click on it. The <#> can be replaced with a number that represents the number of minutes before the modem time-out.

Learn Your IP Address

Find out a computer's IP address by running Winipcfg from the Start/Run command line. In some cases, a network administrator has set up a pool of IP addresses called DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) under Windows NT Server. A workstation requests an IP address from a DHCP server and "leases" the IP address for a duration set by the network administrator. A common problem occurs when the DHCP server is moved to a different subnet and workstations on the network continue to look for the DHCP server at the old IP address. If the computer is not receiving an IP address from the DHCP server, run the Winipcfg utility to determine if the IP address of the DHCP server is correct. Click on the More Info button for details on where Win95 is looking for the DHCP server. If the DHCP server address is wrong, choose Release and then Renew. The IP address should now be updated with a new lease.

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