Cannot access shares over home network

A

Andi

Hi,

I have a home network set up, three desktop machines all using XP (two on
Pro, one on Home) and a laptop using XP Home. All computers are in the same
workgroup.

All the connections are wired, and all machines (with the exception of the
laptop) are on Service Pack 1.

A shared DSL internet connection exists for all machines, provided by a
router.

All the machines on the network can see and ping eachother and the router,
and internet access for all the machines has never been a problem, however
accessing shares and folders across the network causes problems.

The main machine can see and access all the shares on any of the other
computers, however, none of the other machines can access eachothers shares.
I have turned off all firewall, run the network setup wizard several times
on each machine, and looked at removing and resharing folders/drives and
still it doesn't work.

All the machines are visible when you do a "net view" in command prompt, and
are visible under their workgroup entry in My Network Places. I get the
following problems when trying to access shares:

If I am on any machine other than the main computer, and try to access the
main computer, I get a "Not accessable, you might not have permission"
error, however some times it prompts for a user name/password, which returns
the same error regardless of what is entered in the box.

If I am on any machine other than the main computer, and try to access the
shares of any other computer, I get the error described above.

If I am on the main computer, I can access other computers shares without a
problem.

All computers can ping eachother and access the internet fine. I have
disabled all firewalls for testing, and still the problem occurs. I would
be most grateful for any advice.

Thanks in advance of any assistance.

Andi
 
C

Chuck

Hi,

I have a home network set up, three desktop machines all using XP (two on
Pro, one on Home) and a laptop using XP Home. All computers are in the same
workgroup.

All the connections are wired, and all machines (with the exception of the
laptop) are on Service Pack 1.

A shared DSL internet connection exists for all machines, provided by a
router.

All the machines on the network can see and ping eachother and the router,
and internet access for all the machines has never been a problem, however
accessing shares and folders across the network causes problems.

The main machine can see and access all the shares on any of the other
computers, however, none of the other machines can access eachothers shares.
I have turned off all firewall, run the network setup wizard several times
on each machine, and looked at removing and resharing folders/drives and
still it doesn't work.

All the machines are visible when you do a "net view" in command prompt, and
are visible under their workgroup entry in My Network Places. I get the
following problems when trying to access shares:

If I am on any machine other than the main computer, and try to access the
main computer, I get a "Not accessable, you might not have permission"
error, however some times it prompts for a user name/password, which returns
the same error regardless of what is entered in the box.

If I am on any machine other than the main computer, and try to access the
shares of any other computer, I get the error described above.

If I am on the main computer, I can access other computers shares without a
problem.

All computers can ping eachother and access the internet fine. I have
disabled all firewalls for testing, and still the problem occurs. I would
be most grateful for any advice.

Thanks in advance of any assistance.

Andi

Andi,

If you're getting "Not accessable, you might not have permission" on and off,
this sounds like a browser problem is involved. I'm not discussing Internet
Explorer here. One possible cause of a browser problem would be a
misconfigured or overlooked personal firewall, or other security component. A
laptop, if using WiFi, can be a part of the problem too. 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

Or take a 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

Please let us know if any of these suggestions are of any help. What you learn
may help others in the future, and that's the purpose of these forums.
 
A

Andi

Chuck,

Thanks for the advice. I have had a read of the links, but have still not
got a solution to the problem. I'm enclosing a copy of the ipconfig /all
return from the main computer, I can provide the same details from other
computers if necessary. This machine is using WinXP Pro, with Service Pack
1.

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : ANDI
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : home
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : National Semiconductor
DP83815-Based PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-40-F4-1A-62-C6
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.2
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : 13 May 2006 21:46:22
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : 14 May 2006 21:46:22


 
A

Andi

In a more recent update, I have found that if I use the run command to map
to a share directly (typing \\andi\music) for instance to connect to the
shared music folder, other computers on the network will connect OK - the
same goes for all other shared folders. However, shared drives are not
accessable (same error as before) and none of the shares appear when you
browse My Network Places either.

Andi

Andi said:
Chuck,

Thanks for the advice. I have had a read of the links, but have still not
got a solution to the problem. I'm enclosing a copy of the ipconfig /all
return from the main computer, I can provide the same details from other
computers if necessary. This machine is using WinXP Pro, with Service Pack
1.

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : ANDI
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . : home
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : National Semiconductor
DP83815-Based PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-40-F4-1A-62-C6
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.2
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : 13 May 2006 21:46:22
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : 14 May 2006 21:46:22
 
C

Chuck

Chuck,

Thanks for the advice. I have had a read of the links, but have still not
got a solution to the problem. I'm enclosing a copy of the ipconfig /all
return from the main computer, I can provide the same details from other
computers if necessary. This machine is using WinXP Pro, with Service Pack
1.

Andi,

The symptom "it prompts for a user name/password" is symptomatic of an
authentication issue, possibly Guest not activated under Simple File Sharing, or
the like.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/file-sharing-under-windows-xp.html#Help>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/file-sharing-under-windows-xp.html#Help

When you amend that with "sometimes", you're probably talking about a browsing
problem, which causes intermittent access and visibility issues on its own.
You'll have to solve the browser problems first.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/08/solving-network-problems-tutorial.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/08/solving-network-problems-tutorial.html

If you don't get lucky and stumble upon the solution, you need diagnostics.
Please have a read of the links again. Both "browstat status", "ipconfig
/all", "net config server", and "net config workstation", from each computer,
provide valuable information. Leave some out, and we could take longer finding
the problem.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/background-information-useful-in.html>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/background-information-useful-in.html

And Andi, please type your answers after mine - it will benefit both of us.
Help us to help you.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/how-to-post-on-usenet-and-encourage.html#TopPosting>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/how-to-post-on-usenet-and-encourage.html#TopPosting
 
C

Chuck

In a more recent update, I have found that if I use the run command to map
to a share directly (typing \\andi\music) for instance to connect to the
shared music folder, other computers on the network will connect OK - the
same goes for all other shared folders. However, shared drives are not
accessable (same error as before) and none of the shares appear when you
browse My Network Places either.

Andi

That's the browser again, Andi.
 

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