ip address keeps getting forgotten when no device attached

[redss]

I have a 2nd ethernet card in my system that I use to share my internet connection. eth0 is connected to the internet, and eth1 is used for my 2nd computer to connect into. Whenever the 2nd computer is turned off, eth1 forgets its ip address, then when then 2nd computer is turned on, it can't access the internet until I reset the ip address on eth1 ("ifconfig eth1 up 192.168.1.1).

I only see this behavior under ubuntu 10.04, not the previous distro that ran on this box, slackware 12.

How do I keep eth2 from forgetting the ip address when no computer is attached?

[Kloschüssel]

You can't prevent ifdown eth1 on cable disconnect. But you can configure eth1 to use always the same IP and bring the device up automatically on cable connect.

See here: /etc/network/interfaces