Direct Cable Connection (DCC) is a feature of Microsoft Windows that allows a computer to transfer and share

files File or filing may refer to: Mechanical tools and processes * File (tool), a tool used to ''remove'' fine amounts of material from a workpiece **Filing (metalworking), a material removal process in manufacturing ** Nail file, a tool used to gent ...

(or connected printers) with another computer, via a connection using either the

serial port In computing, a serial port is a serial communication interface through which information transfers in or out sequentially one bit at a time. This is in contrast to a parallel port, which communicates multiple bits simultaneously in paralle ...

, parallel port or the

infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from aroun ...

port of each computer. It is well-suited for computers that do not have an

ethernet Ethernet () is a family of wired computer networking technologies commonly used in local area networks (LAN), metropolitan area networks (MAN) and wide area networks (WAN). It was commercially introduced in 1980 and first standardized in ...

adapter installed, although DCC in Windows XP can be configured to use one (with a proper

crossover cable A crossover cable connects two devices of the same type, for example DTE-DTE or DCE-DCE, usually connected asymmetrically (DTE-DCE), by a modified cable called a crosslink. Such a distinction between devices was introduced by IBM. The cros ...

if no

Ethernet hub An Ethernet hub, active hub, network hub, repeater hub, multiport repeater, or simply hub is a network hardware device for connecting multiple Ethernet devices together and making them act as a single network segment. It has multiple input/o ...

is used) if available.

Connection types

Serial port

If using the

s of the computer, a null modem cable (or a null modem adapter connected to a standard serial cable) must be used to connect each of the two computers to communicate properly. Such connection uses PPP protocol.

Parallel port

If the parallel ports are used, Windows supports standard or basic 4-bit cable (commonly known as LapLink cable), Enhanced Capabilities Port (ECP) cable, or Universal Cable Module (UCM) cable (which was known as DirectParallel cable by Parallel Technologies).

IR

Infrared communication ports, like the ones found on

laptop computer A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper l ...

s (such as

IrDA The Infrared Data Association (IrDA) is an industry-driven interest group that was founded in 1994 by around 50 companies. IrDA provides specifications for a complete set of protocols for wireless infrared communications, and the name "IrDA" also ...

), can also be used.

USB

Connecting any two computers using USB requires a special proprietary bridge cable. A directly connected pin-to-pin USB type A cable does not work, as USB does not support such a type of communication. In fact, attempting to do so may even damage the connecting computers, as it will effectively short the two computers' power supplies together by connecting their 5V and GND lines. This can possibly destroy one or both machines and cause a fire hazard since the two machines may not have exactly the same USB source voltage. Therefore, Direct Cable Connection over USB is not possible; a USB link cable must be used, as seen in th
Microsoft knowledge base article 814982
However, with a USB link cable, a program which supports data transfer using that cable must be used. Typically, such a program is supplied with the USB link cable. The DCC wizard or Windows Explorer cannot be used to transfer files over a USB link cable.

Newer hardware technology with identical functionality

There are at least 2 known famous USB-crossover cables capable of bidirectional data-transfer between computers similar to RJ45/Ethernet cables: ProlificUSA.com's TE-C0372 High Speed USB 2.0 Host to Host Bridge Cable (PL25A1 Chipset) and ProlificUSA.com's TE-C0363 Superspeed USB 3.0 Host to Host Bridge Cable (PL27A1 Chipset), and drivers for these seem to have been included in newer versions of the

Linux Linux ( or ) is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution, which i ...

kernel.

Windows Vista changes

Windows Vista drops support for the Direct cable connection feature Direct cable connection not available in Windows Vista
/ref> as

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio w ...

and

Bluetooth Bluetooth is a short-range wireless technology standard that is used for exchanging data between fixed and mobile devices over short distances and building personal area networks (PANs). In the most widely used mode, transmission power is limit ...

have become ubiquitous on current generation computers. To transfer files and settings, Windows Vista includes

Windows Easy Transfer Windows Easy Transfer is a specialized file transfer program developed by Microsoft that allows users of the Windows operating system to transfer personal files and settings from a computer running an earlier version of Windows to a computer runn ...

, which uses a proprietary USB-to-USB bridge cable known as the Easy Transfer Cable.

References

External links

Direct-Cable Connection Introduction from WindowsNetworking.com

How To Set Up a Direct Cable Connection Between Two Computers in Windows XP from Microsoft Support
Newer software enables the use of DCC-like technology over the Internet: * IRC IRC DCC and

XDCC XDCC (Xabi DCC or eXtended DCC) is a computer file sharing method which uses the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) network as a host service. History Limitations in the original DCC protocol prevented the transfers of very large files, or groups of ...

, DC++, ADC, eEmule, torrent,

magnet A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, steel, nic ...

, PSYC2, etc.: * http://fex.belwue.de * http://github.com/schollz/croc * http://mirrorbrain.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Direct Cable Connection File sharing Discontinued Windows components