Lost File & Printer Sharing

[Guest]

I have (2) desktop PC's networked with an ethernet hub. Both are running
Windows XP Home Edition SP2. I set-up a hope network on the (2) machines a
couple of months ago & everything was working fine. Now I have lost the
ability to see or share files between the two. Both machines can still
access the internet thru the hub via a high speed cable modem. I am also
able to ping the IP addresses for one machine from the other. I have rerun
the home network wizard a few time & also tried the network troubleshooter
with no luck. Any suggestions?

Upstairs PC:
IP Address: 69.135.36.10
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Dafault Gateway: 69.135.36.1
Name: Upstairs
Workgroup: HOME

Basement PC:
IP Adress: 65.27.211.135
Subnet Mask: 255.255.248.0
Default Gateway: 65.27.208.1
Name: Basement
Workgroup: HOME

 

[DLink Guru]

Well your problem is you are not in the same IP range and different Subnets.
Make those match and everything should work again.

Robert....

 

[Chuck]

I have (2) desktop PC's networked with an ethernet hub. Both are running
Windows XP Home Edition SP2. I set-up a hope network on the (2) machines a
couple of months ago & everything was working fine. Now I have lost the
ability to see or share files between the two. Both machines can still
access the internet thru the hub via a high speed cable modem. I am also
able to ping the IP addresses for one machine from the other. I have rerun
the home network wizard a few time & also tried the network troubleshooter
with no luck. Any suggestions?

Upstairs PC:
IP Address: 69.135.36.10
Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0
Dafault Gateway: 69.135.36.1
Name: Upstairs
Workgroup: HOME

Basement PC:
IP Adress: 65.27.211.135
Subnet Mask: 255.255.248.0
Default Gateway: 65.27.208.1
Name: Basement
Workgroup: HOME

If you are going to have 2 computers using separate Cable Broadband internet
connections, you absolutely should not be connecting them for file sharing using
TCP/IP, unless you setup a VPN between the two. Open file sharing using the
internet is a very bad idea; if you can see shared data on another computer, so
can everybody else on the internet.

This is (one of the very few cases) where you need to use IPX/SPX on both
computers. IPX doesn't route, so it is only visible between the two computers.
Install and enable IPX/SPX, and unbind file sharing from TCP/IP, on both
computers.

This web page written by Steve Winograd will help explain how to do this.
http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/xp/network_protocols.htm

--
Cheers,
Chuck
Paranoia comes from experience - and is not necessarily a bad thing.
My email is AT DOT
actual address pchuck sonic net.

 

[Richard G. Harper]

You need to purchase a router and put it on your Internet line, then connect
the PCs to the router. As Chuck has pointed out, the current configuration
has both computers 100% exposed to any passing hacker, cracker or curious
person passing by.

 

[Guest]

Can you help a novice with some further direction on just what needs to be
done, and any thoughts on what would have caused this in the first place?

 

[DLink Guru]

The problem is that you have 2 machines connected to a HUB connected to a
modem. Each machine is connecting seperatly to your ISP and getting its own
IP address from your ISP. Now if by some extreme chance your ISP gives your
two computers the same subnet and puts them in the same IP range, you shold
beable to network the two computers together. But once your ISP connection
is reset and you get new IPs from your provider then BOOM, you can no longer
network. I would suggest getting a router, not a HUB, and sharing your one
ISP connection instead of having two seperate connections.

Robert...