Network and Internet Connection Management

[Tip]Tip

Before connecting to the Internet, you are encouraged to setup a firewall on your machine first so as to avoid bad surprises such as intrusions to your system. You can setup a very simple, yet effective, firewall using DrakFirewall (please refer to the section called “Securing your Internet Access via DrakFirewall”, for more information).

Your Mandrakelinux system contains a tool which allows easy configuration of your network access, whether it be to the Internet or to a local network. To launch drakconnect, first open Mandrakelinux Control Center and select the Network & Internet section. Here, a few tools allow you to configure and maintain network connections. A view of the main interface is shown in Figure 4.1, “DrakConnect Tools”. We will describe the Internet connection sharing tool in the section called “Internet Connection Sharing”.

Figure 4.1. DrakConnect Tools

DrakConnect Tools

New Connection

This tool allows you to setup a new network connection. drakconnect supports different types of Internet and network connections. The first step consists of choosing which type of connection you wish to configure (see Figure 4.2, “Choosing the Type of Network Connection to Configure”). The example will show how to setup a “traditional” (dial-up) modem connection to the Internet. Always make sure you have all the information provided by your ISP or network administrator at hand.

Figure 4.2. Choosing the Type of Network Connection to Configure

Choosing the Type of Network Connection to Configure

Select the Modem connection type and continue to the next step. A list of detected modems is shown. If the modem you wish to configure has not been automatically detected, select the Manual choice box and then the communications port the modem is connected to.

You will then be presented with a list of countries/ISPs; if yours is listed select it and continue to the next step: some parameters (connection name, phone number to dial, and authentication scheme) will be automatically set, verify them, add the missing ones and accept them. If yours is not listed, select the Unlisted - edit manually option, click on Next and fill the parameters with the settings provided by your ISP (see Figure 4.3, “Setting Dialup Connection Parameters”).

Figure 4.3. Setting Dialup Connection Parameters

Setting Dialup Connection Parameters

All parameters should be obvious, except for authentication type. The Authentication pull-down list's value depends on what your ISP supports: Script-based (an old type of authentication method based on “expect” and “send” type of chat between your system and your ISP); Terminal based (a terminal window will pop up when the connection is made and you will have to login interactively); PAP, CHAP, or PAP/CHAP (authentication information exchange protocols, CHAP is preferred because it is more secure, PAP/CHAP will automatically choose the supported one).

Then come the IP, DNS and gateway settings. Nowadays, most ISPs provide them automatically when a connection is made, so selecting the Automatic option on them is usually a safe bet. You will then be asked whether you wish to activate the network connection at boot time or not: it is probably safer and cheaper to choose No here.

You can now control your Internet connection state using the kppp remote access connection dialer through the main menu: Internet+Remote Access->KPPP.

Setting up a LAN Connection

Select the LAN Connection option in the first step of the wizard. Your NICs will be detected automatically; if you have more than one, you will have to select the one you wish to configure. You are also offered the choice of manually loading a driver for your NIC.

Then, you will have to specify if the network parameters will be automatically set up (Automatic IP (BOOTP/DHCP)) or not (Manual configuration): ask your network administrator and fill the next steps with the parameters you have been provided.

[Tip]Tip

Most cable-modem users will have to specify the automatic IP option here and continue the wizard to the end leaving all the rest of the settings at their suggested values.

Finally, the wizard will ask you to restart your network to activate the changes.

After the configuration is done, you can bring the network connection up or down as described in the section called “Monitor Connections”. Please bear in mind that LAN connection types are “always-on”, that is, they are setup to be always started at boot time.

Internet Access

Figure 4.4. Configuring the Internet Access

Configuring the Internet Access

This tool allows you to specify Internet access parameters if they need to be modified after initial configuration. Please bear in mind that these parameters are system-wide and apply to all interfaces. If needed, the gateway address may be modified as described in the section called “Manage Connections”.

Manage Connections

Figure 4.5. Manage network connections

Manage network connections

This tool allows you to modify network interface-specific parameters. Use the drop-down list at the top to select the interface to be configured. The tabs allow you to change parameters and options according to the network interface type selected for configuration.

Monitor Connections

This tool shows the activity of the network interfaces. You can specify some options for the traffic graphic: update interval, scale, etc. It can also be used to control the status of the network connection, bringing it up or down.

Remove a Connection

This tool simply allows you to remove a network interface. Select the interface to be removed in the Net Device pull-down list.

[Warning]Warning

You will not be asked for confirmation of interface removal. Once an interface has been selected for removal, pressing the Next button deletes it at once.

Proxy Settings

This tool allows you to define the host names or IP addresses of proxies for the FTP and HTTP protocols that your computer will use. Fill the fields with the required values and click on OK.

A Proxy is a server that retrieves information from the Internet on your behalf keeping a local copy of the web pages that are most frequently requested. They are referred to as “caching proxies”, and optimize bandwidth usage. In some organizations, you cannot access the Internet directly, but you must pass through a proxy which authenticates you before allowing you to connect to the Internet. This is usually combined with a firewall which only guarantees the proxy direct access to the Internet. They are referred to as “authentication proxies”. In corporate or business environments, proxies perform both caching and authentication functions for performance and security reasons.