MATLAB: Basic question regarding xPC target setup

host pctarget pcxpc

Hi all,
I have a few basic questions that I would like to ask regarding xPC target setup. Please pardon my stupidity but I am new to xPC target and I have limited knowledge about computer setup.
Before that, let me explain what I have now. I have two desktop computers with on-board network card and a second network card (Intel PRO/100 S). In the host PC, the on-board network card is used to access matlab from the university network. The second network card is used to communicate with the target PC. (Intel card of host pc connected to INTEL CARD OF TARGET PC)
My questions are:
1) I want to use cross-over cable for the host-target communication. Is this cross-over cable is the same cable that we use to connect to our LAN network? (I read somewhere that we need UTP cross-over cable with RJ45 to make direct connection between the host and the target computer).
2) I read that we can use the command !IPCONFIG to get the ip address of the host PC and then assign the target computer ip address to be 1 above the host PC ip address in the XPCEXPLR GUI. Is this command giving me the HOST COMPUTER IP address of the second network card?
Thank you so much for your help.

Best Answer

  1. The crossover cable is not the same as used to connect to the LAN; you need a differently wired cable. This can be purchased quite easily. Modern adapters don't need the different cable since the card will detect the cable type and compensate. However, as far as I remember, and I could be wrong, the PRO/100S will require a crossover cable. Another option is to use two standard LAN cables and connect host and target via an Ethernet switch instead of directly: getting a crossover cable is probably simpler.
  2. !IPCONFIG will give you the IP addresses of all cards, not just the host-target one. Since you have configured the IP address of the host-target communication card, you should use a similar IP address for the target.
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