Adding machine to existing network

[Guest]

Hey, sorry in advance, I've been up all night on this machine, and my brain
is freezing at troubleshooting this.

I have a machine I've reformatted and reinstalled SP2.

I have two wireless laptops connected through a Linksys router that is
plugged into a DSL modem.

The two laptops used to "See" each other, could ping, share files, etc.

Here is what I have done to restore this:
- On the rebuilt machine, I named it what it USED to be called
- I assigned it the same workgroup as the other machine
- I ran the "Set up a home or small office network" wizard
- I turned on "File and Print Sharing" in Network Properties
- I have opened the HD up under Sharing and Security.

And I STILL can't see the other machines inthe workgroup. What am I missing?

Do I have to reboot every machine?

Do I have to rename the workgroup?

Thanks!

 

[Chuck]

Hey, sorry in advance, I've been up all night on this machine, and my brain
is freezing at troubleshooting this.

I have a machine I've reformatted and reinstalled SP2.

I have two wireless laptops connected through a Linksys router that is
plugged into a DSL modem.

The two laptops used to "See" each other, could ping, share files, etc.

Here is what I have done to restore this:
- On the rebuilt machine, I named it what it USED to be called
- I assigned it the same workgroup as the other machine
- I ran the "Set up a home or small office network" wizard
- I turned on "File and Print Sharing" in Network Properties
- I have opened the HD up under Sharing and Security.

And I STILL can't see the other machines inthe workgroup. What am I missing?

Do I have to reboot every machine?

Do I have to rename the workgroup?

Thanks!

Rebooting every computer might resolve the symptom, but if you depend upon that
as a solution, you might be rebooting a lot. Let's try and fix the problem.

One of the most common causes of this problem would be a misconfigured or
overlooked personal firewall, or other security component. There are several
other possibilities too, and any might be the cause of your problem. Read this
article with an open mind.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/irregularities-in-workgroup-visibility.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/10/irregularities-in-workgroup-visibility.html

Check the NetBT setting, and make it consistent for all computers. Configure
firewalls appropriately!
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/04/netbios-over-tcpip.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/04/netbios-over-tcpip.html

Or you can look at "browstat status", "ipconfig /all", "net config server", and
"net config workstation", from each computer, and diagnose the problem. Read
this article, and linked articles, and follow instructions precisely (download
browstat!):
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-network-neighborhood.html#AskingForHelp>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/troubleshooting-network-neighborhood.html#AskingForHelp

 

[Guest]

An "open mind"? Hmmm...

Two things - it may well be the firewall (Zone Alarm), as it blocked a ping
request from the original machine to the rebuilt one.

Second thing is, the rebuilt machine doesn't have any NetBios info in
"Connection Properties". I had to download all my drivers from Dell when I
rebuilt; shouldn't this have been included?

Thanks

 

[Chuck]

An "open mind"? Hmmm...

Two things - it may well be the firewall (Zone Alarm), as it blocked a ping
request from the original machine to the rebuilt one.

Second thing is, the rebuilt machine doesn't have any NetBios info in
"Connection Properties". I had to download all my drivers from Dell when I
rebuilt; shouldn't this have been included?

Thanks

Did you run the Network Setup Wizard after you rebuilt? Do that, and select:
This computer connects to the Internet through another computer on my network or
through a residential gateway.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/using-network-setup-wizard-in-windows.html#NATClient>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/using-network-setup-wizard-in-windows.html#NATClient

Then check NetBT.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/04/netbios-over-tcpip.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/04/netbios-over-tcpip.html

 

[Guest]

Well, I don't know why or how - and I THINK I did exactly the opposite of
what your article suggests, but now it works.

(btw, I HAD run the Network Setup Wiz on the rebuilt machine).

One of the first things I do, of course, is compare the settings from one
machine to the other. (Did this before my first post) The existing machine
HAD the "Default" NB setting on the advanced WINS tab checked, so that's what
I did on the rebuilt machine.

As soon as I changed it to "ENABLE" on the new machine (still "Default" on
the old), everything started working as it should.

On the old machine, I have a variety of options on the General tab:
- "AEGIS Protocol (IEEE 802.1x) v2.3.1.9"
- "NWLink NetBIOS"
- "NWLink IPX/SPX/NetBIOS Compatible Transport Protocol"
.... that I DON'T have on the rebuilt machine.

Will that pose an ongoing problem?

Thank you for your help.

 

[Chuck]

Well, I don't know why or how - and I THINK I did exactly the opposite of
what your article suggests, but now it works.

(btw, I HAD run the Network Setup Wiz on the rebuilt machine).

One of the first things I do, of course, is compare the settings from one
machine to the other. (Did this before my first post) The existing machine
HAD the "Default" NB setting on the advanced WINS tab checked, so that's what
I did on the rebuilt machine.

As soon as I changed it to "ENABLE" on the new machine (still "Default" on
the old), everything started working as it should.

On the old machine, I have a variety of options on the General tab:
- "AEGIS Protocol (IEEE 802.1x) v2.3.1.9"
- "NWLink NetBIOS"
- "NWLink IPX/SPX/NetBIOS Compatible Transport Protocol"
... that I DON'T have on the rebuilt machine.

Will that pose an ongoing problem?

Thank you for your help.

Well, the article advises consistency. You can use NetBT, or you can do without
it. There are several arguments for either strategy - just be consistent. And
it may work now, or maybe it will stop working some time. Just note the
possibilities, for the future.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/07/advanced-windows-networking-using.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2006/07/advanced-windows-networking-using.html

Now if you have IPX/SPX on one computer but not on the others, you will
eventually run into a problem. If you're not using it (and without another
computer with it, you're not) then you should get rid of it.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/fix-network-problems-but-clean-up.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/fix-network-problems-but-clean-up.html

But if things are working, you've achieved the goal. Congrats. And thanks for
the feedback.

 

[Guest]

What's strange is I'm using XP SP2 on both. If I read your
"advanced-windows-networking-using.html" page correctly, I shouldn't need
NetBT on either one.

I'm pretty handy with these thinking boxes, but when we start getting into
things like "packets" and "binary transfer protocols", I start to glaze
over... So this works, and I think I won't mess anymore.

 

[Chuck]

What's strange is I'm using XP SP2 on both. If I read your
"advanced-windows-networking-using.html" page correctly, I shouldn't need
NetBT on either one.

I'm pretty handy with these thinking boxes, but when we start getting into
things like "packets" and "binary transfer protocols", I start to glaze
over... So this works, and I think I won't mess anymore.

If you have a DNS server for local name resolution (NOT just service from your
ISPs DNS server), you can disable NetBT and use direct hosted SMBs. If you did
have a local DNS server, you'd know about it. That would generally be a
dedicated server, not a NAT router with DNS relay.

You simply need to keep the protocols used by both computers consistent. If one
computer is speaking a different protocol than the other, you'll have problems.