What is Wake-On-Lan?

 

Wake-On-Lan allows you to start up a computer that is turned off. You send a special packet from any computer on the network to the computer that is off. Once the packet has been received it will power up the computer. It is very simple to set up and it doesn't cost you any thing. That's right it free.

 

Having this configured on my home network has saved me several times. It has saved me walking time, and driving time. For example I always have a computer turned on and configured so I can connect to it from any where in the world. I connect to this computer and then can power up any other computer that is on my home network. So if I need a file off my home computer from work, I can get it in a pinch and my boss is happy.

 

Here is a visual image of what I do to power up any computer on my home network

  

In this example I will show you how to configure and use the Wake-On-Lan tool to power up a computer. Get ready to Impress your friends with your Magic packet!

 

What you need before you start.

- Mac address and IP address of the computer you are trying to connect to

- Wake on Lan client (download free tool at http://www.solarwinds.com/downloads/)

- Network card configured on the PC that you want to wake up.

 

Before the fun begins we need to configure the network card on the computer that will be powered off. It needs to be able to receive the magic packet

 

Connect to the computer that will be power off.

- Go to the control panel

- Open up Network Connection

 

 

Find the Network Card you are going to use to wake up the computer with.

- Right Click and choose Properties

 

 

- Click on Configure

 

 

- Click on the Advance tab

 

 

- Find and highlight Wake Up Capabilities

- Set the Value to Magic Frame or Both

- Click Ok and save the changes you just made

 

You will need to gather a little more information before you power this computer down. You will need to gather up the IP address and Mac address of the network card you just configured.

If you need help with this check out these links

Find Your IP Address

http://mixeduperic.com/windows/find-your-ip-address-in-windows.html

Find Your Mac Address

http://mixeduperic.com/windows/how-to-find-the-mac-address-of-your-network-card-in-windows.html

 

Waking up the Computer you powered Down

Install Wake-On-Lan Client

Download at http://www.solarwinds.com/downloads/

 

- Launch WakeOnLan

Start > All Programs > SolarWinds Free Tools > WakeOnLan

 

Type in the Mac Address and IP address of the network card you wish to send the packet to.

Click on the Wake Up PC button

 

It will tell you that the packet has been sent

Click OK

 

You will see some monitoring information

It may take a few minutes for the computer to power up

 

Once the computer has powered up you should see a notification saying it is powered up.

Hope this cool little trick can come in handy for you!

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