Configuring WINS Clients

Another aspect of WINS is configuring WINS clients so that they use the service for NetBIOS name-to-IP resolution. Any Microsoft Windows client or server can be configured as a WINS client. And although each client operating system is configured for WINS in a slightly different way, you are basically providing the client with the IP address of your WINS server so that it will use it as a mapping resource of NetBIOS name to IP address rather than send broadcasts onto the network.

Figure 20.11 shows the WINS tab of the Advanced TCP/IP settings for Windows Server 2008. To add the IP addresses of WINS servers, click the Add button and then supply the IP address of the WINS server (repeat if several WINS servers reside on the network). The WINS tab on a Windows Server 2008 is very similar to the tab that you find on Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 clients.