LAN Bandwidth Monitor
 

I'd like to monitor the amount of bandwidth being used by each of two computers on my home LAN.

I've got a cable modem and a WRTG54G wireless router. My desktop is hooked to the router, as is one wireless laptop.

I'd like some sort of desktop utlility that I can leave up and monitor, in realtime, how much up/downstream bandwith each device is using.

XP pro.

Ideas if you please.

Tall order, both systems are running XP? I’ll assume so. And you also need to have admin privileges on both systems with your current user.

First open the start menu and click run, then type

%SystemRoot%\system32\perfmon.msc /s

Wait a few seconds and a window will pop up, this is the performance monitor, a little known wonderful tool for monitoring performance.

First remove the initial performance monitor (mine defaults to a disk monitor) do this by selecting the first counter at the bottom of the graph and hitting the x just above the graph. next right to the left of the x is a plus (add) click it, then drop down the performance object and select network interface, then select bytes received/sec and your network adapter and click the add button, select bytes sent/sec and click add again. Now up at the top type the laptops computer name into the box proceeded by the \\ and again select bytes received and sent with the correct network adapter. Then click close. Now you’re done. Watch the pretty graph and watch the colors scale how ever you like.

Oh and this will be slightly more than it really is, because there is a bit of overhead for the 2 computers to talk to one another.