Abstract

Internet connects millions of computers from around the world and provides communication, storage and high speed computation infrastructure. As such Computer Networks has emerged as one of the most important technological field of our time. Users are joining the internet from every nook and corner of the world and utilising its services in all fields including education and business. Networking devices provide the infrastructure to these different institutions joining the internet world, with a reasonably high investment. As a result high cost of networking devices and their enterprise oriented design limits their usage to big institutions. These devices are also less flexible as their configuration and functionalities are designed to suit the big players of the industry. This method transforms Personal Computer into Networking Devices (PCIND) used in computer networks. The invention serves as various networking devices as and when required and is therefore a cost effective way of utilizing the benefits of computer networking. Overall it serves as a cheap alternative to the networking devices with the flexibility to configure and install the system according to local needs.

This paper is based on a patent and is organized into four parts, viz a method to turn a PC into Router, a Server, a Wireless Access Point and a Bridge⁄Gateway⁄Firewall. The main features of the patent are given and also the working of the method.

Keywords: Networking, router, firewall, computer, server, wireless access point, bridge, switch, open source, Live CD.