Networking WXP Professional laptop to WXP Home Desktop

[Scott Bass]

Hi,

I'm not familiar with WXP Home, only WXP Pro. I'm trying to help a friend
network her WXP Pro laptop to her WXP Home desktop.

WXP Home does not have the Local Users and Groups applet. The accounts on
her desktop (hers plus the kids) don't have passwords (probably not the best
idea but that's how she likes it plus there is a hardware firewall (router)
in place).

I'd like to setup a service account on the desktop (eg.
Administrator/password) to handle the login request when I attempt to map a
network drive from the laptop to the desktop. I'd prefer the service
account to ***NOT*** show up on the login screen.

Right now, when I try to map the network drive, the login credentials are
DESKTOP\Guest (grayed out, can't change it), and entering a password doesn't
help (I think it's blank anyway).

Any ideas on tackling this issue would be greatly appreciated. I would
especially like to know how to create hidden, service accounts on both XP
Home and XP Professional.

Regards,
Scott

 

[Chuck]

Hi,

I'm not familiar with WXP Home, only WXP Pro. I'm trying to help a friend
network her WXP Pro laptop to her WXP Home desktop.

WXP Home does not have the Local Users and Groups applet. The accounts on
her desktop (hers plus the kids) don't have passwords (probably not the best
idea but that's how she likes it plus there is a hardware firewall (router)
in place).

I'd like to setup a service account on the desktop (eg.
Administrator/password) to handle the login request when I attempt to map a
network drive from the laptop to the desktop. I'd prefer the service
account to ***NOT*** show up on the login screen.

Right now, when I try to map the network drive, the login credentials are
DESKTOP\Guest (grayed out, can't change it), and entering a password doesn't
help (I think it's blank anyway).

Any ideas on tackling this issue would be greatly appreciated. I would
especially like to know how to create hidden, service accounts on both XP
Home and XP Professional.

Regards,
Scott

Scott,

With Windows XP Home, the Guest account is used for file sharing. You can
activate it for local use, and give it a password, thru Control Panel - User
Accounts. To use it for file sharing, you need to activate it either thru
Computer Management, or "net user".
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/file-sharing-under-windows-xp.html#Activate>
http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/06/file-sharing-under-windows-xp.html#Activate