How to configure an Instrument LAN with only one network card and Empower 3 - WKB99352

OBJECTIVE or GOAL

Engineers or customers with a laptop or desktop computer that is not connected to a corporate LAN want to run instruments on that computer. Or maybe an engineer wants to qualify a system using their laptop instead of the customer's machine.

ENVIRONMENT

• Empower 3

PROCEDURE

1. Add the computer name to the computer's hosts file:
   • Run NotePad with Admin rights
   • Open the following file in Notepad: C:\Windows\System32\Drivers\etc\hosts
2. Go to the end of the file; on the first blank line, add 127.0.0.1 <TAB KEY> Computer Name, and after the last letter hit Return.
3. Save the file.
4. In Control Panel > Network and Sharing Center > Change Adapter Settings, select the instrument LAN adapter and right-click on properties. Highlight Ipv4 Protocol, right-click, and select Properties. Select Advanced, clear the Automatic Matrix selection, and in the box specify the number 2. Select OK > OK, and back to LAN Adapters. Right-click and select Disable, and then right-click and select Enable.
5. Open a command prompt (DOS PROMPT) and ping the computer name. It should return a 127.0.0.1 address. If not, reboot the computer and try the ping again.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

When the computer is booted, it tries to connect to a network on the LAN card. Because there is no corp network to attach, the computer name is assigned the instrument LAN IP address. So pinging the computer name returns a 192.168.0.1 address. This means the WatersDHCP cannot attach to that address and the instruments will not work. The procedure above will assign the computer name to the local loopback adapter with an address of 127.0.0.1, which will allow the LAN adapter to bind to the instrument LAN's 192.168.0.1.