Verifying a Windows NT Network Configuration

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Verifying a Windows NT Network Configuration

You should check the Network Properties on the NT computer to verify that operating system settings are not hindering TCP/IP from connecting. You can also check the System Log in NT Event Viewer for possible error messages coming from network configuration errors. Problems with the network card configuration are usually announced in two types of messages. First, when NT boots, you should see a message saying A Dependency Service Failed to Start. This means the adapter card, on which other services depend, failed. Because the adapter card failed, these other services couldn’t start. Second, you should see an error in the System Log from the adapter card. There should be other errors following it as other services that depend on the adapter card fail to start. In some cases, however, you won’t see any error messages; TCP/IP simply won’t connect, even with a Ping command. You should not depend on an error message to remind you to verify that the adapter card settings are correct.

In checking the Network properties, a number of things must be in place for TCP/IP to work properly. The computer must have a unique NetBIOS name. If a computer uses a duplicate name, the networking services do not start. The error generated from the duplicate name is the first chronological error in the list, at the bottom of the screen. The subsequent errors, moving from bottom to top, are a result of the duplicate name. Without a unique name, the other networking services don’t start. And without networking services, TCP/IP does not work because this computer has no way to communicate on the network.

You must have client software (the Workstation service) installed on the computer to initiate TCP/IP communications. To respond to incoming requests you must have the Server service installed. You can verify their installation on the Services tab of the Network Properties dialog box. You should also check to make sure the services are started. In Control Panel, Services you can see whether services are started and how they are configured to start. The Startup parameters shown in Figure 16.7 are configured to have the Workstation service start automatically when NT boots.

You can also check the Network properties to make sure TCP/IP is installed. Because you configure TCP/IP through the Protocols tab, you can quickly see whether TCP/IP is installed because it is listed on the Protocols tab.

You should check the configuration of the network adapter driver. If the driver is not configured properly, without the correct driver for the adapter card or without the proper settings that match the configuration of the card, you cannot communicate on the network. Figure 16.8 shows the System Log with an error resulting from the wrong adapter card parameters. The first chronological error comes from the adapter card problems. Any subsequent errors are generated from the network card not starting. Remember that by default new entries in the log are added at the top of the display.

Finally, the bindings must be configured properly. All the protocols installed on the computer should be bound to the various networking services. You can check the bindings on the Bindings tab of Network Properties. Make sure TCP/IP is not disabled on any of the services.

You can also move TCP/IP up in the binding order if you have multiple protocols installed. The binding order does not affect the computer’s capability to connect using TCP/IP, but it does make TCP/IP connections faster than if TCP/IP is lower in the binding order.

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