I just got my XBox last weekend. Love it. I wanted to participate in XBox Live but I felt the $99 Microsoft wireless adapter is ridiculously priced. I used bridged networking on Windows XP to allow me to use my laptop as a "wireless adapter" that connects into the XBox's Ethernet port. I use a short patch cord to connect the laptop to the XBox. It's a nice solution that allows you to connect the XBox to a wireless network without paying $99 for the adapter.
Of course, if you don't have a laptop, the $99 is a better deal.
I have this process posted on my blog with screen captures of each step if you need more detail.
http://bimmergeek.blogspot.com/2006/05/configuring-network-bridge-for-xbox.html
I chose a bridge over Internet Connection Sharing because the bridge's use is specific to connecting different types of network adapters together; and because we have a wireless network already, so there isno functional need for the ICS solution. Plus, I've never used a bridged connection before, so it gave me something to learn.
Here's what you do:
1. Select Control Panel/Network Connections and while hovering over Network Connections, right click and choose Open. This will open a panel that should list your network connections.
This image shows all my existing network connections. Yours may not have the same adapters. The two adapters that matter are your wireless adapter and your Ethernet adapter. They will have different names than mine because I have renamed them from their default values. I have highlighted the two adapters in the graphic below.
2. If you have both Ethernet and wireless adapters (and you must in order for this to work), then both of them will be listed in the Network Connections panel. Using the ctrl-click selection method or the drag-area method, select both adapters.
3. Right-click one of the adapters and select the <b>Bridge Connections</b> option.
4. You will see a notification that the bridge is being built. This may take a few moments.
5. Once the bridge is complete, you will see the bridge icon and the network adapters.
6. The bridge is only partially complete at this point. To complete the configuration, you need to relate the network adapters to the bridge. I'm not exactly sure why this is because you have to select the adapters to create the bridge in the first place. This is my first bridge, so it's possible there is a better way of doing it. But this process has worked for me. If you know of a more concise way of configuring the bridge, let me know and I'll update the process.
In any case, select the bridge, right-click and select Properties.
7. In the Properties dialog, put check marks in the network adapters that you want to bridge. Make sure you select the wireless and Ethernet adapters.
8. Now, the bridge is complete. It will take a few moments for your laptop to finish the configuration, get a new DHCP lease and complete the connections.
To verify if your bridge works, connect the XBox 360 to your laptop's Ethernet port and connect with XBox Live.
batkinson001,
Yes, it will work with a tower too. Bridging is part of Windows XP (and SP2). All you need on the tower is a wireless adapter to connect to your wireless network and an Ethernet port. I don't think you will need a cross-over Ethernet cable.
Davebimmergeekhttp://www.bimmergeek.com
bimmergeek wrote: batkinson001, Yes, it will work with a tower too. Bridging is part of Windows XP (and SP2). All you need on the tower is a wireless adapter to connect to your wireless network and an Ethernet port. I don't think you will need a cross-over Ethernet cable. Davebimmergeekhttp://www.bimmergeek.com
I did everything in the blog, and used the ethernet cable that he 360 came with, and it wont work... will I have to restart my comp for it to work? xbox test connection found the ip, but not the dns...
If you can surf the web on your laptop/tower with the bridge complete and active, then the bridge is working. If the bridge is incorrectly configured, you will not be able to browse web pages.
If you got an IP address, that would suggest to me that the bridge is working. You shouldn't need to reboot but sometimes when I'm learning something new, I reboot to be sure that I eliminate problems caused by lingering details. So, if you're not sure, go ahead and reboot.
Also, getting an IP for the XBox from DHCP but not getting a DNS address implies that one is set to automatic and the other is manual on the Xbox. If DNS is set to manual but the IP doesn't match up with the DNS IP for your host laptop/tower, then the XBox won't be able to resolve. Since you mention DNS, I'm guessing you already know how this works but I'm being explicit for future readers.
Try going into the System Panel of the Xbox 360.
Choose Network Settings then Edit Settings.
Confirm the IP address settings. I manually configured my XBox's IP settings as well as my DNS settings. If DNS is set to Automatic but you don't think you're able to resolve addresses, you can try changing it to manual and setting DNS to whatever your host laptop uses. You can find this information by going to WinXP... Start... Run... then type CMD.
Once the command line window opens, type ipconfig /all
Look for the information related to the bridge. It will list all the pertinent information along with the IP addresses of the DHCP and DNS servers. Update your XBox manually with the information you find in ipconfig.
HTH
bimmergeek
bimmergeek wrote: If you can surf the web on your laptop/tower with the bridge complete and active, then the bridge is working. If the bridge is incorrectly configured, you will not be able to browse web pages. If you got an IP address, that would suggest to me that the bridge is working. You shouldn't need to reboot but sometimes when I'm learning something new, I reboot to be sure that I eliminate problems caused by lingering details. So, if you're not sure, go ahead and reboot. Also, getting an IP for the XBox from DHCP but not getting a DNS address implies that one is set to automatic and the other is manual on the Xbox. If DNS is set to manual but the IP doesn't match up with the DNS IP for your host laptop/tower, then the XBox won't be able to resolve. Since you mention DNS, I'm guessing you already know how this works but I'm being explicit for future readers. Try going into the System Panel of the Xbox 360. Choose Network Settings then Edit Settings. Confirm the IP address settings. I manually configured my XBox's IP settings as well as my DNS settings. If DNS is set to Automatic but you don't think you're able to resolve addresses, you can try changing it to manual and setting DNS to whatever your host laptop uses. You can find this information by going to WinXP... Start... Run... then type CMD. Once the command line window opens, type ipconfig /all Look for the information related to the bridge. It will list all the pertinent information along with the IP addresses of the DHCP and DNS servers. Update your XBox manually with the information you find in ipconfig. HTH bimmergeek
I inputed all the info in the ipconfig window, when i did the IP, windows said there was a conflict so i put it back to whatever it was originally. for the mac adress, i could only put it inthe alternate MAC address section and i couldnt add the dashes that ipconfig showed it with.... still fails the dns check.
I dunno what to do...
The conflict error message means there are two devices on your network with the same IP address. Most likely, this is because the XBox and the host computer are trying to use the same address. This may indicate your DHCP server isn't responding to the XBox's request for an IP address. I'm just guessing here as to what's going on; can't be for sure. What we do know though is that two devices are trying to use the same address.
You didn't mention if you could surf the net on your computer. If you can, then the IP conflict is probably because your XBox and your computer are trying to use the same IP address. In this case, go into your XBox and specifiy an IP address, subnet mask, DNS server, etc. manually. The LinkSys wireless access points typically use the network segment 192.168.1.x This means your DHCP server will have an IP address in that range. Check the documentation of your router for more specific info on how DHCP works on it. If you have a router running DHCP, I think usually the router will hand out IP addresses from the lower range of the segment, i.e. 192.169.1.12, etc. I configured my XBox to have a manual IP address in the upper end of the segment. I think mine is set to 192.168.1.245. I'm running Windows Server 2003 at home and that server handles both DHCP and DNS at 192.168.1.2, so those are the values I used for the XBox. Again, you can use ipconfig /all to get that information when you run ipconfig on the host computer.
If you cannot browse the internet on your computer, then try this:
Go to Network Connections
Right-click the bridge you created and choose Properties.
On the General tab, there is a section titled This connection uses the following items:. Find the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) item. It is usually the last item in the list.
Click on the Properties button
Manually configure the IP address, subnet mask, default gateway and primary DNS server. You will pick an IP address and then use ipconfig as described above to get the subnet mask, default gateway and DNS server. Enter those values into the properties for the TCP/IP connection.
The first time I built the bridge, I had to manually enter in the network values. But then I deleted that bridge so that I could do the screen captures for the step-by-step process on my blog. For some reason that I don't understand, when I built the second bridge, I didn't need to manually configure the IP info. So, you may be bumping into that as well. [shrugs] Not sure.
Hope this helps,
Dave
This is a very good trick. Props to bimmergeek. I have one question though. Is there anyway you can do the same thing but with a desktop instead? I have no routers in my house but i have 2 other pc's on the same network + my 360 and ps2 which are connected directly to the modem. It's kind of a weird network. I have 2 usb adapters that connect to the 2 PCs. My network is set up like this:
- (2x) Wall Jack > Phone Line <Connects to> USB adapter <Connects to> PC ( and that's how my PCs get their internet)
- Modem > PS2 or 360.
Now the problem is that i have to keep switching ethernet cables from 360 to PS2 and i can't really use both online at the same time w/o switching cables. Now i know that this can easily be fixed by buying a router or even a bridge but i was wondering if i can sort of Create a bridge using my Desktop that is right next to my 360 and PS2 and right under my modem(I'll post a pic if you need me to) so i can use both online at the same time. Oh and my PC has an unused ethernet cable because it uses that USB adapter thingy.
Thanks for the props MaNNie Fr3Sh.
You ask an interesting question. I think there are two Yes answers available if I understand your network correctly. However, I want to point out that what I offer here is mostly theoretical because a). I don't fully understand your network topography and b). I've never tried what you want to do, which is connect three devices to the internet through a software bridge. I encourage you to research this solution before attempting it. The only worst case scenario I can see is that the bridge doesn't work, so you delete the bridge and go back to switching cables. But sometimes my vision isn't so good, so I might be wrong about that.
All the caveats aside, here's my best shot at a solution for you:
You can use a desktop. I only suggest a laptop because it is more portable than a desktop PC.
It sounds like you have a wired network rather than a wireless one, correct? I think you can do what you want to do but you will need to have a total of three internet ports on the computer that is near your consoles. You said you already have an unused ethernet port on the computer plus the USB adapter that feeds your internet to the computer. You will need one more ethernet card so that you have a total of two ethernet ports plus the USB interface from your DSL line. Ethernet port 1 will be for your XBox and ethernet port 2 will be for the XBox.
Then you will need to create the bridge by selecting all three network adapters: the USB adapter and the two ethernet adapters. The process I document on my blog should work pretty much the same. I haven't tried this so I can't be sure: what I'm describing here is a bit of SWAG and some experience/knowledge.
The key thing you will need to do is make sure that the XBox and the PS2 have unique IP addresses on your network. I don't have DSL so I'm not sure how it handles dynamically allocating IP addresses and whether the IP addresses for each device are public IP's or private (e.g. 192.168.1.x) ones. You said you don't have a router so I'm a bit uncertain how your devices are getting IP addresses and whether they are public or private. If DSL gives each device connected into a phone port its own public IP address, the bridge might not work AND more importantly, it might not be secure. I guess the first thing I would do is try having each console configured to automatically get its network information from DHCP and see how that works out.
You could also try playing around with Windows XP's Internet Connection Sharing capability. Again, I'm not clear on whether each device on your network has a public or private IP (I'm guessing public unless your modem has a router with DHCP built into it) but ICS will only work with a network using private IP addresses. You can research this on your computer by choosing Start\Help and Support... and searching for the term in quotes "internet connection sharing."
Playing around with this bridging or ICS solution requires you to have some fundamental networking knowledge. Depending on how much you want to *** around with this, it might be easier to just switch cables or just buy a router or switch (basically the same device except a switch doesn't have DHCP or firewall capabilities). If you dont have the fundamental knowledge but enjoy learning this sort of thing, this could be a cool project to learn from. I usually have ideas for a solution without having the necessary skills and the project is what leads to the knowledge. It's how I learn this sort of stuff. I can't learn from a book: I need to try it out.
Anyway, good luck.
hmmm... I think my problem is similar. only diff in info is the ip's for my wireless tower and my 360 which i want to run thru the wireless tower (using the 360's supplied ethernet cable) the ip diff is in the very last digit my tower being 104 and my 360 being 103 of the 192.168.0.xxx IP range... it still gets hung up on the dns checking...
My router is the dlink DI-524 wireless router, and i found this in the status page in its onboard software, I dont know if it will help anything with my problem some of the info isnt found in ipconfig /all or is different from ipconfig:
Device InformationFirmware Version: 1.12 , Tue, 31 May 2005LANMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0aIP Address 192.168.0.1Subnet Mask 255.255.255.0DHCP Server Enabled WANMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0bConnection PPPoE Connected IP Address 69.158.101.15Subnet Mask 255.255.255.255Default Gateway 69.158.101.15DNS 67.69.184.151 206.47.244.57 WirelessMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0aSSID dpabca68791980Channel 6ENCRYPTION WEP Open System (128 bits)
Please dont hack me lol I got enough problems as it is.
I wont hack you but someone else might. Go back and edit your post and remove the public IP addresses. They aren't necessary to the solution and even though the public IP address is "leased" from your ISPs DHCP server, often the IP allocation is based on the MAC address of your network interface card, so you will tend to get the same IP when the lease is up or you restart your computer or modem. Your ISP mileage may vary but the bottom line is you don't need to post your public IP in any forum.
What is the default gateway, subnet mask and IP address showing up as on your XBox?
Is your XBox networking info being handled automatically or manually?
bimmergeek wrote: I wont hack you but someone else might. Go back and edit your post and remove the public IP addresses. They aren't necessary to the solution and even though the public IP address is "leased" from your ISPs DHCP server, often the IP allocation is based on the MAC address of your network interface card, so you will tend to get the same IP when the lease is up or you restart your computer or modem. Your ISP mileage may vary but the bottom line is you don't need to post your public IP in any forum. What is the default gateway, subnet mask and IP address showing up as on your XBox? Is your XBox networking info being handled automatically or manually?
automatically.
well it wont let me edit the msg, so whats done is done. the default gateway is 192.168.0.1, subnet is 255.255.255.0, and the ip for the xbox is 192.168.0.103
batkinson001 wrote: My router is the dlink DI-524 wireless router, and i found this in the status page in its onboard softwareI Device InformationFirmware Version: 1.12 , Tue, 31 May 2005LANMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0aIP Address 192.168.0.1Subnet Mask 255.255.255.0DHCP Server Enabled WANMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0bConnection PPPoE Connected IP Address 69.158.101.15Subnet Mask 255.255.255.255Default Gateway 69.158.101.15DNS 67.69.184.151 206.47.244.57 WirelessMAC Address 00-13-46-b7-33-0aSSID dpabca68791980Channel 6ENCRYPTION WEP Open System (128 bits) Please dont hack me lol I got enough problems as it is.
My router is the dlink DI-524 wireless router, and i found this in the status page in its onboard softwareI
You have just given away the keys to the kingdom with your post. I would most certainly remove/refrain from posting this type of information in a public forum!! You may as well leave your birth date. mothers maiden name, and social security number as well (unless that information is available on your now open PC).
Not trying to be rude here, but this is pretty bad!
Hi
My advice is to immediately contact your Internet Service Provider and inform them about this. They should be able to assist you with a new IP address etc. If you haven’t already done this then please do so IMMEDIATLEY! as your computer is now wide open to attack! Please be real careful what you post on these forums.
the information is already different than what was posted here. the only thing i hate about these forums is the fact that you cant delete your own posts or even edit them at your own choosing (stupid time limit)...
i found these while browsing my isp site:
Here are some alternative DNS server addresses you can try:Bell Canada (not Sympatico): 000.000.000.000 / 000.000.000.000 / 000.000.000.000Level3 Communications: 4.2.2.1 / 4.2.2.2CIRA: 000.000.00.00 / 000.000.00.00
I have removed the actual addresses this time (i have learned much since my earlier mistake posting here), however what is left, I do not know what they are, as I have not seen those before.
Anyone know?
ripit03 wrote:Hey everyone,I was having the same problems as everyone else with the IP and DNS issues, then I found this solution - direct from XBox nonetheless! Head over the the link below and just follow their steps for your connection (e.g., I clicked on the "Windows XP" link and then followed the instructions for "Local Area Connection". Their directions will automatically set-up your computer to allow other devices to access the internet through it. I got done, fired up the 360 and connected to Live no problem.Hope it helps!http://www.xbox.com/en-US/support/connecttolive/xbox360/connectionmethods/windowsics-internalmodem.htm
It would help if ICS didnt use the same ip as my router...