Help me. I am blown to joan on what is happening. Scenario is: 1. Works --> Pacbell ISP, ADSL modem, Netgear wireless, static IP assigned by Pacbell as well as static IP on the home network 192.xxx.xxx.xxx. VNC from Windows 2000 Server (wired) to Linux/Linspire 5.0 works (wireless). Linux/Linspire to internet https or wwws works. Scenario 2. DOES NOT Work --> Comcast ISP, Cable modem, Netgear wireless, DHCP assigned by Comcast as well as DHCP assigned IP on the home network 192.xxx.xxx.xxx. VNC from Windows 98 (wired) to Linux/Linspire (wireless) DOES NOT work. Linux/Linspire to internet https or wwws DOES NOT Work, except to a private IP address, not yahoo,.google.etc. Can ping Windows to Linux or vise versa. When I try and VNC from Win98 (wired) to Linux (wireless) an error message is returned that reads "The remote user has closed the connection". Scenario 2 allows the Win98 (wired) system to access the outside world. I don't understand why the VNC connection to Linux/Netgear/Comcast is automatically closing and why the Linux/Netgear/Comcast can access a outside private IP but not the usual suspects like Google, Yahoo, etc. The "only" difference is the ISP and both Windows OSes. The Linux/Linspre box is one and the same. Thanks in advance.

Why change the LAN addressing from something that works (static) to something that does not work (DHCP)? The IP addressing method on the ISP-to-router interface has to be what the ISP supports, but that on the router-to-LAN interface should logically be whatever you can get to work there.

Good question. Different households, different ISPs, same router, same box.

I'm delighted to hear that they are different households. I shudder at the thought of switching one installation between those two ISPs because I have no reason to believe that either of them is much superior to the other.

Surely you can guess what I'll say next: you know how to make the PacBell installation work, so set it that way and leave it alone. Similarly, you know how to make a LAN work so set up the Comcast household that way also. Then you can concentrate on what does not work, which appears to me to be the Comcast interface only.

My experience with Comcast is that it took about six months and three different models of modem to get it working well but then it stayed very reliable for more than a year until about three weeks ago. That's when they started having serious DNS problems which cause connecting to servers (and therefore surfing) to be very slow though transfer rates (once a connection is made) are still quite satisfactory.

If you are still having trouble with Comcast I really think your best bet is their tech support (1-800-COMCAST). They have always done well by me, even to the extent of admitting when the problem was at their end. But if you think I can help, just post to this thread again.

Best wishes.

ahhhhh,..... this is what I am looking for; precise and under "10" steps. Stay tuned...

Using Comcast High Speed Internet with a Broadband Router

This page explains how to get Comcast High-Speed Internet to work with a broadband
router. (A router might also be referred to as a "residential gateway" or "firewall".
Basically, it's a box that plugs into your cable or DSL modem and allows you to connect
other computers to the internet, either by ethernet or 802.11 wireless, a.k.a. WiFi.)
Brief summary: you have to configure the router to clone the MAC address of the
computer you used to run the Comcast installation software, and use DHCP to
assign the router an IP address. After that, everything seems to work as expected.
I believe this information to be correct at the time of writing. However, I make
absolutely no guarantees about whether this information will work for anyone else: use itat your own risk. Also, I live in Prince George's county, Maryland. This information
may not be correct for Comcast customers in other parts of the country.
I use a D-Link DI-614+ router. However, this information should apply to any kind of
router.
Last revised $Date: 2004/10/13 14:34:38 $.
Comments to daveho@cs.umd.edu.

What to do
In these steps I've highlighted the most important points in boldface.
1. Install the cable modem so it is plugged in, connected to the cable, etc.
2. Connect a PC running Windows to the cable modem using ethernet.
3. Find the MAC address of the ethernet adapter. To find the MAC address, run
the command ipconfig /all from a DOS window. Information about each
network adapter in the system will be listed. Look for the line labeled "Physical
Address" for the ethernet adapter you are using to connect to the cable modem.
That is the MAC address. Write it down for later reference.
4. Run the Comcast software to register your account. When this process completes
you should be connected to the internet. Test that you are able to view web sites,
etc.
5. Shut down Windows. Unplugging the cable modem and plugging it back in is
probably not a bad idea.
6. Now, turn on your router, and connect your PC to it (by either ethernet or
wireless). However, don't connect the router to the cable modem yet. Log into
the administrative interface of the router. Usually, this is done using a web
browser. See your router's documentation for more information.
7. Configure the router so the MAC address of its WAN interface is the same as
the MAC address you wrote down in step 3. Often, this function is called
"Clone MAC Address". Essentially, the Comcast installation software programs
the cable modem so it will only work when connected to a single computer: the
one you used to set up your broadband connection. Cloning the MAC address
tricks the modem into thinking the router is that computer.
8. Configure the router to use DHCP. Generally, you will find this option in the
part of the administrative interface that offers other settings such as "PPPOE" and
"Static IP". You should pick the "DHCP" option.
9. Now, you can connect the router's WAN port to the cable modem. At this point,
you should be able to connect to the internet from other computers through the
router.

Notes
Using a router may violate the Comcast terms of service. However, all consumer
broadband routers have a built-in firewall function that protects your computer(s) from
worms and other forms of attack. I strongly feel that for this reason alone, using a router
is an absolute necessity. Being able to share the connection wirelessly between multiple
computers is a nice additional benefit, of course.

I hardly know what to say, I'm so awash in info from that last post. I live in a county adjacent to P. G. and Comcast installation is not nearly that complicated here. There is no need to clone MAC addresses or to use Windows (ugh!). Just cable any one computer to the router and use any browser to set up the router with DHCP on the Internet (WLAN) side and whatever addressing works for you on the LAN side. I prefer DHCP but I really think you should go with what you know. Then:

1. Power down the cable modem, the router, and the computer.
2. Verify that the coaxial cable is correctly connected to the cable modem.
3. Verify that the cable modem is correctly connected to the router's Internet (WAN) port.
4. Verify that the computer is correctly connected to any of the router's local (LAN) ports.
5. Power up the cable modem and wait for its lights to reach a steady state (~1 minute).
6. Power up the router and wait for its lights to reach a steady state (~1 minute).
7. Power up the computer. When it finishes booting, bring up a browser & see if you can connect to google or LinuxQuestions (or Comcast, even). If you can you're golden---connect the rest of your hosts. If you can't, call Comcast---you're paying them to fix things like this.


HAH! Still less than ten steps!