Installing Software over a network
this can be done with any Windows OS that will let you share drives over a network.
So let's just say that you bought Office 2010 Professional for $300 and you brought it home, put the DVD into your computer, and guess what, the so called "DVD Drive" cannot read the DVD!!! You have 2 computers, one running XP, one running 7. You want to install the software on the one with Windows 7, but it won't recognize it! Frustrated you try putting the DVD into the XP Machine, and Setup loads normally! Oh the pain! In this How-To, I'll teach how you can still install that software on the Windows 7 Machine, without buying anything but time!
Note the above was an example, and it could be any software that won't load, and it may also not load on another OS, and will load on a different OS.
First, we have to prep the computer that can load the CD/DVD.
Step 1. We need to share the CD-Drive on the computer that can load the CD so that the other computer can access it.
a. Click "Start", "My Computer".
b. Right-Click your CD/DVD-Drive, and click "Sharing and Security".
c. Then click "If you understand the risk, but you still want to share the root of the drive, click here.".
d. Give the drive a name like "CD/DVD Drive on Kitchen Computer".
e. Click "Apply", then "OK".
Step 2. Now we need to make sure that both computers are configured so that they can access each other. Do each of these steps on BOTH computers.
a. First you'll want to make sure both computers are connected to the same Wi-Fi network, or to the same router through cable so that this will work right.
b. We now need to make sure both computers are in the same workgroup. To do this, click "Start", then "Control Panel".
c. Open "System" when using the classic view. For older OS users, switch to the "Computer Name" tab, for newer OS users, click "Advanced System Settings", then switch to the "Computer Name" tab.
d. Now look next to "Workgroup:", and keep note of the workgroup name. If the workgroup name is the same on BOTH computers, you can skip the rest of this section. If not, on ONE computer, change the Workgroup name to match the other by clicking "Change", and then changing one computer's workgroup name to match the other. Note that you will have to restart the computer after you do this.
Step 3. Now after that is done, we are ready to start the installation. You only need to do the following steps on the computer that CANNOT read the disc.
a. Click "Start", then on older OS users, click "My Network Places".
b. On newer OS users, just click "Computer". Now for older OS users, you should see the CD-Drive pop up in the "My Network Places" window.
c. Just double-click it, and open the Setup that is on the CD. For newer OS users, on the left hand navigation pane, you should see the CD-Drive pop up there. Double click and open the Setup.
Troubleshooting
Error 1. When I try to open the CD-Drive to run setup, it asks for a password to the drive, which I do not know.
Later Operating Systems use password protected sharing so that users that hack into your network will not get into your files. To disable this, click "Start", "Control Panel", "Network and Sharing Center". Then click "Change Advanced Sharing Settings", expand the choice that has "(Current Profile)" next to it, and scroll down to "Password Protected Sharing", and click "Turn off password protected sharing", and click "Save Changes".
Error 2. My computers still do not see each other on the network after I changed the Workgroup.
Have you restarted your computer yet? You need to to be able to see the changes take affect.
Error 3. Not really an error, but my installation is SO SLOW!
The installation speed will only be running at the maximum speed your network can handle. Often times, installation speed can be up to 3 times as slow as doing it from the CD.
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