for broadband access to the internet, you need to contract with an internet service provider (isp) for a single-user internet access account using a cable modem or dsl modem. this modem must be a separate physical box (not a card) and must provide an ethernet port intended for connection to a network interface card (nic) in a computer. your firewall does not support a usb-connected broadband modem.

    for a single-user internet account, your isp supplies tcp/ip configuration information for one computer. with a typical account, much of the configuration information is dynamically assigned when your pc is first booted up while connected to the isp, and you will not need to know that dynamic information.

    in order to share the internet connection among several computers, your firewall takes the place of the single pc, and you need to configure it with the tcp/ip information that the single pc would normally use. when the firewall’s internet port is connected to the broadband modem, the firewall appears to be a single pc to the isp. the firewall then allows the pcs on the local network to masquerade as the single pc to access the internet through the broadband modem. the method used by the firewall to accomplish this is called network address translation (nat) or ip masquerading.

    are login protocols used?

    some isps require a special login protocol, in which you must enter a login name and password in order to access the internet. if you normally log in to your internet account by running a program such as winpoet or enternet, then your account uses ppp over ethernet (pppoe).

    when you configure your router, you will need to enter your login name and password in the router’s configuration menus. after your network and firewall are configured, the firewall will perform the login task when needed, and you will no longer need to run the login program from your pc. it is not necessary to uninstall the login program.

    what is your configuration information?

    more and more, isps are dynamically assigning configuration information. however, if your isp does not dynamically assign configuration information but instead used fixed configurations, your isp should have given you the following basic information for your account:

    1 an ip address and subnet mask

    2 a gateway ip address, which is the address of the isp’s router

    3 one or more domain name server (dns) ip addresses

    4 host name and domain suffix

    for example, your account’s full server names may look like this:

    mail.xxx.yyy.com

    in this example, the domain suffix is xxx.yyy.com.

    if any of these items are dynamically supplied by the isp, your firewall automatically acquires them.

    if an isp technician configured your pc during the installation of the broadband modem, or if you configured it using instructions provided by your isp, you need to copy the configuration information from your pc’s network tcp/ip properties window or macintosh tcp/ip control panel before reconfiguring your pc for use with the firewall. these procedures are described next.

    obtaining isp configuration information for windows computers

    as mentioned above, you may need to collect configuration information from your pc so that you can use this information when you configure the fvm318 firewall. following this procedure is only necessary when your isp does not dynamically supply the account information.

    to get the information you need to configure the firewall for internet access:

    1.on the windows taskbar, click the start button, point to settings, and then click control

    2.double-click the network icon.

    the network window opens, which displays a list of installed components.

    3.select tcp/ip, and then click properties.

    the tcp/ip properties dialog box opens.

    4.select the ip address tab.

    if an ip address and subnet mask are shown, write down the information. if an address is present, your account uses a fixed (static) ip address. if no address is present, your account uses a dynamically-assigned ip address. click “obtain an ip address automatically”.

    5.select the gateway tab.

    if an ip address appears under installed gateways, write down the address. this is the isp’s gateway address. select the address and then click remove to remove the gateway address.

    6.select the dns configuration tab.

    if any dns server addresses are shown, write down the addresses. if any information appears in the host or domain information box, write it down. click disable dns.

    7.click ok to save your changes and close the tcp/ip properties dialog box.

    you are returned to the network window.

    8.click ok.

    9.reboot your pc at the prompt. you may also be prompted to insert your windows cd.

    obtaining isp configuration information for macintosh computers

    as mentioned above, you may need to collect configuration information from your macintosh so that you can use this information when you configure the fvm318 firewall. following this procedure is only necessary when your isp does not dynamically supply the account information.

    to get the information you need to configure the firewall for internet access:

    1.from the apple menu, select control panels, then tcp/ip.

    the tcp/ip control panel opens, which displays a list of configuration settings. if the “configure” setting is “using dhcp server”, your account uses a dynamically-assigned ip address. in this case, close the control panel and skip the rest of this section.

    2.if an ip address and subnet mask are shown, write down the information.

    3.if an ip address appears under router address, write down the address. this is the isp’s gateway address.

    4.if any name server addresses are shown, write down the addresses. these are your isp’s dns addresses.

    5.if any information appears in the search domains information box, write it down.

    6.change the “configure” setting to “using dhcp server”.

    7.close the tcp/ip control panel.