windows nt 4.0 protocols

[jdiek]

I have inherited a windows nt 4.0 server with windows 95 and 98 clients. I would like to know if there is a way I can check to see which protocols are actually being used. Currently, all of them are installed and I would like to uninstall the ones not being used.

Thank You.

[itsolution]

What you need to do is right click network neighborhood>properties>configuration tab and see what protocols are running on all your clients. There may be more than one bound to the network card, depends on what kind of servers the client needs to talk to. Next go to the server and right click network neighborhood>properties>protocols tab and see what protocols it is running. Choose one that is common to all. Hopefully TCP/IP is configured, it would be your best choice, but it requires a little work. Although, netbeui is a faster protocol, but it cannot cross a router. So if your network is or is ever going to be segmented, you should stay away from it. If you install DHCP services TCP/IP is easy to administer.

[tantone]

If you're connecting to a Novell Server of any kind, you'll need NWLink. If not, get rid of it. Keep NetBEUI and TCP/IP. TCP/IP because of it's versatility and routability. NetBEUI you really don't need, but it sure comes in handy for troubleshooting connectivity issues.

[itsolution]

How exactly would Netbeui be useful in troubleshooting connectivity?, as opposed to TCP/IP that employs utilities such as ping. If your connecting to NetWare I would suggest loading Client32 on the clients and Novells IPX/SPX instead of Microsofts client services for Novell and NWlink. But, I don't think that's relevant here because he didn't say anything about NetWare servers. Nebeui is very fast on small networks, it is also self-tuning and easy to implement. But, it doesn't support the internet protocols like POP & HTTP. So if the network needs to provide these types of services (E-Mail) then you should use TCP/IP. You can use both and put the most utilized at the top of the binding order, but this can make some user logons more time consuming.

[This message has been edited by itsolution (edited 06-07-2000).]

[jdiek]

Itsolution, I guess I should have been more descriptive. I know where to see the protocols to see what is installed, what I needed is a method to determine if the protocol is being utilized by the network. If it is not, I will uninstall it. I was hoping to find a method to confirm that it is not being used before I uninstalled the protocol. Any suggestions?

[tantone]

If you have a connectivity problem, it's a way to discern whether it's a TCP/IP issue or a physical media issue.

[itsolution]

Any one of them could be being utilized. The basics of networking involve three things; two or more computers, communication media, and a common language (protocol). Like I said earlier, check the computers for the one that common to all. If all computers can see all other computers, then they share a common protocol. If they are all running the same multiple protocols, then which one is being given priority would be determined by the binding order configured on the server. You can reorder them as well thru the network properties on the server(bindings tab). But, I am suggesting that your determination of which protocol to use be based on what would best suit the network not what's being utilized now. Just out curiousity I'd like to know more about this network. How many workstations, services, what existing protocols on server side/client side? How involved do you really need to get with this? My choice would be remove all but TCP/IP and install it where it is not. First install DHCP on the server (network properties>services tab>add>microsoft DHCP server). Define a scope (range of IP addresses large enough to accomodate clients). Then Configure clients to obtain address dynamically. I've outlined the procedure with brevity, I don't know the extent of your knowledge with TCP/IP. If you actually want to monitor packets on your network to see what protocols are used for transport, that can be done thru a program called Network Monitor. It has to be run on NT so in your case that would be the server. To add go to network properties>services tab>add>Network Monitor Tools and Agent. Like I said I don't know your backround, but you would have to be a prodigy to just jump right in and understand a lot of this stuff. I've been bustin my kahoynas nonstop for over two years and I take it in in doses. Keep me posted I'll help however I can.

itsolution

CNE/MCSE (well almost MCSE, one more test)