Setup for multiple networks

[OpIv37]

I have a laptop with WinXP Pro and a desktop machine, also with XP Pro. I take the laptop with me to work everyday and it's setup to connect to my company network there.
I'd like to have it also setup to my home network so I can transfer files to my desktop machine.
Is there any way to set my laptop up with 2 different network profiles that I can switch between? ie: when I'm at work it'll connect to my work network but when I'm home it'll connect to my home network.
Can I do this by setting up two different user profiles?
Any help would be really appreciated.
Thanks in advance

 

[bcastner]

XP includes two features to help:

1. The first is the alternate TCP/IP setting feature. This works in situations where one site is static and the other site dynamic in its IP assignment.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;283676

2. The second feature is the Netsh.exe utility. This allows multiple profiles to be created and then restored at each different site. See Daniel Petri's notes on how to use this utility:

http://www.petri.co.il/configure_tcp_ip_from_cmd.htm

 

[OpIv37]

The Netsh.exe utility looks interesting but it doesn't appear to save the domain/workgroup information when you export the settings. This is the main difference between the two networks since both my office and home network use DHCP for the internet connection.
The way I have it setup now, I can connect to the internet in either setting. But at work, the laptop is part of a domain and at home I have just a simple router and the network has a workgroup. Those are the settings I need to be able to switch back and forth from. Is that possible?

 

[bcastner]

It is not possible to change Domain-Workgroup settings with the native utilities.

This is in fact a decidedly non-trivial event for the Operating system. There are utilities that offer this feature, but at a minimum you will need to be made a member of the Domain administrators group at work for it to succeed, as these Admninistrative credentials will need to be presented each and every time you rejoin a Domain.

I should note that as a practical matter, most in your setting simply rename their home workgroup to match their domain at work and make no other changes. Even in the absence of such a step, you can continue to use your Domain logon at home (using cached credentials) and utilize the native XP feature of storing credentials for any remote connection. Having made a mapping to printers, other computers, etc. once at home these would not have to be redone again even under your work-Domain credentials.

The oldie-but-goodie is Net Switcher, and a fully featured trial version is easily Googled.

One mentioned here by Syar in this Forum several times:

http://www.mobilenetswitch.com/