How To Set Up Wake-On-Lan

What is Wake-On-Lan?

Wake-On-Lan allows you to power up a computer that is turned off. You use a program to send a magic packet from any computer on the network to the computer that is turned off. Once the powered off computer receives the magic packet it will power up. It is very simple to set up and it doesn't cost you any thing. That's right it free. It may come in handy and save your butt at times when you are in a pinch.

Having this configured on my home network has saved me several times. It has saved me walking time, driving time and a bunch of frustration working remotely. 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. This can be useful to power up a server from a remote location.

The image below shows a visual image of what I do to power up any computer on my home network from a remote location.

Note: For the Magic Packet to work you need to configure this on the machine that will be powered off. If you don't set this up it will not wake up. So if you want all your machines on your network to have this capibilty spend some time setting it up before you get in a situation where you wish you did.

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.This step is broken down by windows XP and Windows 7. Follow the steps for your version of windows.

Windows XP:

On the computer that will be powered off:

- Go to the control panel

- Open up Network Connection

Click On Network Connections - Windows XP - Setup Network Card for Wake-On-Lan

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

- Right Click and choose Properties

Right Click On Loca Area Network Connect and Select Properties - Windows XP - Setup Network Card for Wake-On-Lan

- Click on Configure

Local Area Connection - Click On Configure - Windows XP - Setup Network Card for Wake-On-Lan

- Click on the Advance tab

Local Area Connection - Click On Advanced - Windows XP - Setup Network Card for Wake-On-Lan

- Find and highlight Wake Up Capabilities

- Set the Value to Magic Frame or Both

- Click Ok and save the changes you just made

Local Area Connection - Wake Up Capabilites - Magic Frame - Windows XP - Setup Network Card for Wake-On-Lan

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 On Windows

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

Find Your Mac Address On Windows

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

Windows 7:

The steps are pretty much the same. In this example I will take another method on how to open up the network card configuration. Let's get started.

Click on Start > (Right Click) My Computer | Select Manage

Click On Device Manager

Click On Network > (Right Click onYour Network Card)

Select Properties

Click On Network Adapters > Ethernet Network Card | MixedUpEric.com - Setup Wake-On-Lan

Click on Power Management

Network Card Configuration > Click on Power Management | MixedUpEric.com Setup Wake-On-Lan

Put a check mark next to Wake On Magic Packet

Network Card Configuration > Make Sure Wake On Magic Packet is checked | MixedUpEric.com - Setup Wake-On-Lan

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.