Cannot Enable 'Internet Connection Sharing' in XP Home

[ando57]

I have an issue where ICS is greyed out on a customer's laptop

The Equipment is as follows:
Toshiba A20 Laptop
Intel Anypoint ADSL USB Modem
X-Over Cable or Ethernet and Hub as required
XBOX (trying to share the connection)

The difficulty is that the ICS section is disabled in the Advanced tab of the internet connection (greyed out):
- the laptop can connect to broadband correctly through the Intel USB Modem
- ICF is disabled on all connections
- all additional Internet Security Software is disabled for testing (Norton Internet Security 03 is installed)
- all Windows Components relating to networking are installed (but I don't think this would affect ICS)
- the ICS/ICF service is enabled
- the Laptop is not connected to the internet while we are trying to configure ICS
- the network card on the laptop seems to work correctly
- the customer has a desktop computer in the house (also running XP Home) and can share the internet connection successfully using that computer

Could there be something in the registry stopping the ICS option from becoming available?

All suggestions welcome.

Jeff.

 

[bcastner]

Your post is slightly confusing; for example in your listing points #2 and #5 are in conflict.

The problem I think is that the connection that requires ICS, the USB connection to the modem, does not appear to XP to have TCP/IP bound to it. ICS should not be enabled on the ethernet board of the laptop; it is the Host adapter in this setting for the local area netwwork connection.

XP has to be convinced that the notebook has a valid TCP/IP protocol bound to two adapters: the internet or public interface (USB in this case), and the private lan ethernet adapter.

I am decidedly not a fan of USB connections, but it is possible that the modem will support optionally an ethernet connection. I would add a PCMCIA ethernet adapter in this case, and dedicate on to the modem and one to the local LAN.

See if Steve Winograd's step-by-step guide helps:

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/xp_ics/

There is an MS KB ICS Troubleshooter:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q308006

If your only choice is to use the USB connection, a possible workaround might be found in this discussion:

http://support.microsoft.com/defaul...port/kb/articles/q309/5/24.ASP&NoWebContent=1