Network Bridging on Windows 7

Question

I've been messing with my Windows 7 Network Connections settings (i.e. Add to Bridge, Remove from Bridge), that i no longer know what is the default supposed to be.

See screenshot.

1. Is the "Local Area Connection" (Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller) supposed to be Bridged or not?

2. I've also installed OpenVPN, which added Local Area Connection 2 (TAP-Windows Adapter V9). (Note I am using OpenVPN for the purposes of connecting to VPNbook, so as to change my IP address) Is this connection supposed to be Bridged or not?

Answer 1

The bridge will unify the network segments you connect. As if you would solder the network cables to eachother. Every machine on every port will see every other machine on everywhere on the bridge. Directly, without any NAT or any similar. So, the answer is:

1. It depends on the role of your "Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller". In short: if it has an external IP, then your ISP probably won't be really happy if you start to send your internal network packets into his system. (No, he won't be angry, only they won't be routed). But I suspect, it is not the case. Your Realtek PCIe is probably on your localnet behind your router. In this case, it shouldn't be part of the bridge.
2. It depends on the network wishes of the VPNbook. As I understand, it is a VPN service, and they won't do NATing local network. Which mean, they should only see your VPN IP address and not your localnet. So, the case is essentially the same as in (1).
3. Using virtualbox (with its own bridge support), vmware (with its own bridge support) and the windows's miniport bridge simultaneously is surely unneeded on your system and it will cause problems which you can't solve. They look very bad.
4. Anyways, the virtual network interfaces to your VMs should be probably part of the bridge. But all of them (vmware and also virtualbox) have their own bridge solution, which is better as the microsoft one (but it can handle only their VMs). I suggest to not give them a chance to conflict, they will, and bridges aren't a really easily debuggable things.