I have 3 machines all with Windows XP updated to SP3.

All of them have remote desktop enabled under My Computer->Properties->Remote

Between machines A & B I am able to connect either way - no problems. And
from machine C I may connect to either A or B. However, I cannot connect to
machine C from either A nor B.

What happens is I open remote desktop, and the prompt I type in "server"
because that's it's machine name. And the prompt flashes real quick and comes
back, without giving my any error message. This happens on both machines A
and B.

What could possibly wrong and how do I diagnose the problem when there is no
error output to my screen?

Forgot to mention:

I have no firewall on Machine C, anyway if there was a firewall blocking
which I have experienced before then once I type in the remote machine name
then remote desktop gives me an hourglass cursor and takes a while before
reporting an error to me. This issue is totally different - the prompt just
flashes on the screen and cursor remains default pointer.

Also, I have tried using machine C's IP address instead of it's machine name
with no difference.

Finally, I can connect to machine C's file system from A or B through
Windows Explorer, using address like \\server\c$.

Any other info you think might help let me know

remote assistance
is a service that you
may have to double
check that its enabled.

double check your
services that begin
with "remote"

also:

sp3 resolves issues
with remote desktop.

do all the machines
have it?

also:

you might try to run
msmessenger, the newest
version on all the machines

at it has remote assistance
features that may prove
helpful towards resolving
the issue.

--

db·´¯`·...¸><)))º>
DatabaseBen, Retired Professional
- Systems Analyst
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~~~~~~~~~~"share the nirvana" - dbZen

>
>

"trant" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message news:10623431-5D42-46B4-980C-(E-Mail Removed)...
> Forgot to mention:
>
> I have no firewall on Machine C, anyway if there was a firewall blocking
> which I have experienced before then once I type in the remote machine name
> then remote desktop gives me an hourglass cursor and takes a while before
> reporting an error to me. This issue is totally different - the prompt just
> flashes on the screen and cursor remains default pointer.
>
> Also, I have tried using machine C's IP address instead of it's machine name
> with no difference.
>
> Finally, I can connect to machine C's file system from A or B through
> Windows Explorer, using address like \\server\c$.
>
> Any other info you think might help let me know

"trant" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:AB5C4567-9F3B-4C07-8539-(E-Mail Removed)...
>I have 3 machines all with Windows XP updated to SP3.
>
> All of them have remote desktop enabled under My
> Computer->Properties->Remote
>
> Between machines A & B I am able to connect either way - no problems. And
> from machine C I may connect to either A or B. However, I cannot connect
> to
> machine C from either A nor B.
>
> What happens is I open remote desktop, and the prompt I type in "server"
> because that's it's machine name. And the prompt flashes real quick and
> comes
> back, without giving my any error message. This happens on both machines A
> and B.
>
> What could possibly wrong and how do I diagnose the problem when there is
> no
> error output to my screen?


Remote Desktop is only available for WinXP Pro but not for WinXP Home.

You need to provide more details if you require a good answer, e.g.
- Are the three PCs on the same internal network or do you access them via
the Internet?
- Are their firewalls disabled while you're testing Remote Desktop?
- What happens when you type these commands from a Command Prompt on PC A:
ping PC_C
telnet PC_C 3389
mstsc /v:PC_C

> Remote Desktop is only available for WinXP Pro but not for WinXP Home.
>

All 3 machines are in fact XP Pro SP3

> You need to provide more details if you require a good answer, e.g.
> - Are the three PCs on the same internal network or do you access them via
> the Internet?

All machines are on internal LAN. They are all wired to the same D-Link router
Machine A is 192.168.3.157
Machine B is 192.168.3.152
Machine C is 192.168.3.10

> - Are their firewalls disabled while you're testing Remote Desktop?

Yes.

> - What happens when you type these commands from a Command Prompt on PC A:
> ping PC_C

Pinging server [192.168.3.10] with 32 bytes of data:

Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128

Ping statistics for 192.168.3.10:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 0ms, Maximum = 0ms, Average = 0ms

> telnet PC_C 3389

The screen blacks out with a blinking cursor at the top left. No further
activity.

> mstsc /v:PC_C

Some window flashes on screen and goes away. If I repeat the command and
stare at the screen I can see that the window is a little prompt with the
title "Connecting" and then says "Connecting to server..." inside the window
with a Cancel button. But again, it quickly flashes away. No error msg or
anything.

"trant" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:459249CA-E487-446B-8457-(E-Mail Removed)...
>> Remote Desktop is only available for WinXP Pro but not for WinXP Home.
>>
>
> All 3 machines are in fact XP Pro SP3
>
>> You need to provide more details if you require a good answer, e.g.
>> - Are the three PCs on the same internal network or do you access them
>> via
>> the Internet?
>
> All machines are on internal LAN. They are all wired to the same D-Link
> router
> Machine A is 192.168.3.157
> Machine B is 192.168.3.152
> Machine C is 192.168.3.10
>
>> - Are their firewalls disabled while you're testing Remote Desktop?
>
> Yes.
>
>> - What happens when you type these commands from a Command Prompt on PC
>> A:
>> ping PC_C
>
> Pinging server [192.168.3.10] with 32 bytes of data:
>
> Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
> Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
> Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
> Reply from 192.168.3.10: bytes=32 time<1ms TTL=128
>
> Ping statistics for 192.168.3.10:
> Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
> Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
> Minimum = 0ms, Maximum = 0ms, Average = 0ms
>
>> telnet PC_C 3389
>
> The screen blacks out with a blinking cursor at the top left. No further
> activity.
>
>> mstsc /v:PC_C
>
> Some window flashes on screen and goes away. If I repeat the command and
> stare at the screen I can see that the window is a little prompt with the
> title "Connecting" and then says "Connecting to server..." inside the
> window
> with a Cancel button. But again, it quickly flashes away. No error msg or
> anything.

The response to the telnet command tells me that PC_C is listening on port
3389. If it was not listening then you would get an error message after a
while.

The response to the mstsc command suggests that there is something wrong
with the terminal server on PC_C. If this was my machine then I would do
this:
- Examine its event viewer.
- Reboot it in "Safe Mode with Networking", then try again.
- Check Google for hints on re-installing Terminal Services.