Connecting 2 pc's using cat5 cable

Hi,

I'm trying to connect a Windows 7 pc and Windows xp pc directly using cross network cable. It was working a week ago but it stopped working for some reason.

Is there a step by step guide to config everything and maybe get it working again?

Thanks

I've used this guide before:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windo...over-cable

null-modem connections are a pain. You're better off buying a cheap switch 99% of the time. The most common problems for them to just stop working are auto-detect settings. If you have 2 gigabit NICs and one slips into full duplex 1gbps mode, but the other is still in 100mbps, they won't see each other. You can go into your NIC's hardware settings and force them into the same mode, but then that causes trouble if you connect them to something else later.

tl;dr: Get a cheap switch and forget all about it

(2012-05-08 20:30)live4ever Wrote:  I've used this guide before:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windo...over-cable

I don't think they're referring to Windows 7 since I don't have those options when I click on the "Unidentified network".

(2012-05-08 21:31)Bstrdsmkr Wrote:  null-modem connections are a pain. You're better off buying a cheap switch 99% of the time. The most common problems for them to just stop working are auto-detect settings. If you have 2 gigabit NICs and one slips into full duplex 1gbps mode, but the other is still in 100mbps, they won't see each other. You can go into your NIC's hardware settings and force them into the same mode, but then that causes trouble if you connect them to something else later.

tl;dr: Get a cheap switch and forget all about it

It used to work fine a week ago, so it's not really the 10 bucks, but the encumbrance another device+cables makes.

Quote:It used to work fine a week ago

Most NICs are set to autodetect link speed by default, meaning that it will set the link speed depending on what it sees at boot up. Any number of things can cause something different to be detected, from driver updates, to Windows updates, to booting them up in a different order.

Also, some other things to try: http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windo...b9721021a5