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Network Tools for your Handheld

As you will have discovered, the network tools supplied with a standard Windows Mobile are somewhat lacking. Those of you with a Pocket PC with a built in wireless network card, or have bought the required hardware to support one will find this particularly disappointing. Therefore third party developers have stepped in to give you the tools and resources you need to:

IP Config (For DHCP use)
In most cases you will be using DHCP to assign IP addresses to your handheld's wireless card. On a Windows based machine you have tools to allow you to view and renew the DHCP addresses. This tool gives you the same functionality for your handheld.

• Troubleshoot the handheld's network connection
• Use the handheld to troubleshoot other network problems
• Connect to network resources.

This page gives you links to some of those resources.

Be aware that not all of these tools work on Windows Mobile 5.0 and as such are used at your own risk.

http://cam.com/vxipconfig.html

Internet/Network Testing Tools

Once you have got a network connection, you may want to test it with some of the standard network testing tools, like Ping, Whois, Tracert etc.. To do this you will need another tool.

http://cam.com/vxutil.html

Net Use (Connect to Network Drives)

If you want to connect to shared/network drives then you will need another tool. This application works in a similar way to "Net Use" on Windows NT, 2000 and XP systems. It seems to have disappeared from the developer's web site, so we are making it available here.

Net Use

Hosts File

If you do not have internal name resolution (such as internal DNS or WINS servers), then you may need to use a Hosts file to connect to other machines on your network. This will allow you to sync over the network and connect to shared network folders.
A hosts file is like a small DNS file on your computer. It resolves names to IP addresses, much like a personal address book has a list of your friends phone numbers. In this context, think of DNS at your ISP being the big thick phone book that you get from the telephone company. That big phone book may not have the phone number of all your friends, especially if they are on an internal phone system.

This dedicated page tells you how to set up a hosts file on your Windows Mobile device to allow you resolve internal names correctly.

Other Networking Projects for Your Handheld - elsewhere on this site

There are quite a few things that you can do with a networked handheld. Elsewhere on this site you will find:

• Synchronising over the network. Sync when away from your desk.
• Listen to Music stored on your PC. Use your Windows Mobile device like a personal stereo, without having to change the tape or CD!