Windows 7 provides a whole new way to navigate and manage
the networking features of your computer. For mapping your networking
infrastructure, Windows 7 provides the Network and Sharing Center, Network
Map, and Network Connections. You can access and work with these utilities
as discussed in the following sections.1. Using the Network and Sharing CenterThe Network and Sharing Center is a central console for
managing your networking experience. You can access the Network and
Sharing Center by following these steps: Click Start, and then click Control Panel. In the Control Panel, click Network and Internet→Network and
Sharing Center.
Once you’ve accessed the Network and Sharing Center, shown in
Figure 1, you can use
it to manage your general network settings and network status. When you
are connected to a network, the Network and Sharing Center provides an
overview of your networking configuration. The main areas in the Network
and Sharing Center are: - Network overview
Provides a visual overview of your network infrastructure,
including whether you are connected to a network and whether you
can access the Internet from that network. If your computer has
multiple active network connections, the network overview states
that you are connected to multiple networks. Clicking “See full
map” opens the Network Map window.
- Network details
Provides details about the network(s) to which the computer
is connected and the types of access for those networks.
A connection to a LAN is shown as “Local only” or
“No Internet access.” A connection to a LAN that in turn connects
to the Internet is shown as Local and Internet. Clicking the
connection name (next to “Connections:”) allows you to manage the
related network connection.
In the Network and Sharing Center, you’ll see several links at the
bottom of the main pane. Clicking “Set up a new connection or network”
allows you to manage the different types of network connections
available to you. As shown in Figure 2, you may connect to the Internet,
set up a wireless router or access point, manually connect to a wireless
network, connect to a workplace, or set up a dial-up connection. Not
visible in the figure are choices for setting up a wireless ad hoc
(computer-to-computer) network and connecting to a Bluetooth personal area network (PAN). Options include: 
- Set up a new network
If you need to set up a wireless router or access point on
your network, select this option from the list and click Next. The
wizard allows you to configure a wireless router or access point,
set up the properties for file and printer sharing, save the
network configuration for future use, and make the network a
private network. If you have all of the required information to
set up your wireless network, click the Next button and follow the
steps provided by the wizard. - Connect to a network
Clicking this option allows you to connect to an available
network using the window shown in Figure 3. This
includes wired connections to known networks discovered, as well
as wireless connections Windows 7 discovered during the browsing
process while opening the window. If you see the desired network
you want to connect to, click Connect, and Windows 7 will
automatically try to connect you to the network. You can also
disconnect from a network by clicking the network and then
clicking Disconnect. - Choose homegroup and sharing options
Clicking this option allows you to configure
homegroup settings. As Figure 4 shows, you can share
libraries and printers with other computers in the homegroup;
stream media to devices; and view, print or change the homegroup
password.
NOTE You can configure homegroup settings only when you are connected
to the homegroup. If you are not connected to a home network, you
won’t able to change homegroup settings. Troubleshoot problems Clicking this option provides access to the built-in
network and printing troubleshooters. The network troubleshooters
allow you to have Windows 7 automatically try to detect problems
with your networking configuration. As Figure 5 shows, each
troubleshooter is related to a specific type of problem, such as
Internet connections or Homegroups. To start a troubleshooter,
simply click its listing. Network Diagnostics can help to identify
different problems related to an inability to connect to the
Internet, connect to network resources, or find resources on the
network. Although these tools help to identify network problems,
they are not a substitute for the tools available to find and
diagnose low-level problems, such as the Event Viewer and
command-line tools like ping
and tracert. The
troubleshooters will enable and disable your network adapter,
check for a new IP address from the DHCP server, and check for
connectivity. If you have recently set up a network connection and
you find that it does not work, the troubleshooters will help to
identify these simple problems.
NOTE The network and printing troubleshooters are designed
for resolving specific types of problems. They work well when you
think you know the source of a problem. For example, if you suspect
that your computer has a problem with the network adapter
configuration, you can use the Network Adapter troubleshooter to try
to diagnose and resolve the problem. In the Network and Sharing Center, the Network Overview shows
warning icons. Similar warning icons are displayed on the Network Map
as well. Clicking one of these warnings icons starts Windows Network
Diagnostics, which runs a high-level network diagnostics that makes
use of the appropriate network troubleshooters automatically. 
In the left pane of the Network and Sharing Center screen, you’ll
find options to manage wireless networks, change adapter settings, and
change advanced sharing settings: 
Manage wireless networks This option allows you to see wireless connections
already configured or available for your use, as shown in Figure 6. You may also: Add a wireless connection by selecting the Add button.
When you select this option, you are presented with a window
asking you for specific information about how you want to add
a network. You can add a network that is in range of the
computer, manually create a network profile, or create an ad
hoc (computer-to-computer) network.
If you have already enabled a wireless connection, select the
first option, which allows you to connect to the wireless
network and saves a configuration profile for future use. If
you would like to create a new wireless profile, you need to
know the network name, security type and security key, if
enabled. This option also creates a configuration profile for
the wireless network for future use. The last option allows
you to create an ad hoc network connection. An ad hoc network
is a temporary network for the transmission of files among
machines not connected via a wireless access point. This
option works well if you need to transfer data with someone
else and you both have a wireless card in your
computer. View the properties of a selected wireless adapter by clicking the “Adapter
properties” button. You will see a window that allows you to
manipulate the different protocols associated with the
wireless adapter, including TCP/IP properties, file and
printer sharing, and the Microsoft network client protocol.
These settings reside on the Networking tab; the Sharing tab
allows you to configure Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) for
this adapter. Selecting the Configure button on the Networking
tab allows you to view and manage additional features of your
wireless adapter. Choose the type of profile to assign to new wireless
networks by clicking the Profile types button. The default
setting in Windows 7 is “Use all-user profiles only.” This setting
allows connections to wireless networks from your computer to
be accessed only by those with user accounts on the computer.
Selecting the “Use all-user and per-user profiles” allows users to create
connections accessible only to them, which can cause a loss of
network connectivity if you log off or switch users on the
local system. Microsoft recommends that you use the “Use
all-user profiles only” option, which allows greater
flexibility and lessens the chance of lost network
connectivity.
- Change adapter settings
This allows you to view and change the properties of
your computer’s network adapters. As shown in Figure 7, this includes standard
network adapters, wireless adapters, Microsoft VPN connections, and any other software or hardware
adapter allowing you network connectivity.
Change advanced sharing settings This shows the status of different aspects of network discovery and sharing. As shown in Figure 14-8, Windows creates a
separate profile for each type of network you use. You can choose
specific options for each profile. Clicking the Expand button for
a profile allows you to manage the aspects of that profile.
Clicking the Shrink button minimizes the management section for a
profile. Network discovery must be on to discover information
about your network. When you are connected to a home, work, or
domain network, network discovery is turned on automatically to
allow you to discover computers and devices. When you are
connected to a public network, network discovery is turned off to
prevent other people from discovering and then trying to access
your computer. To enable network discovery if it isn’t already
enabled, click “Turn on Network Discovery” and then click Save
Changes.
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