Windows 98 Machines not able to connect

[Guest]

I've got a newly installed Windows 2000 Server SP4 that had to be rebuilt.
Prior to this there were several windows 98 clients that were able to map
their network drive to a share on this server.

I didn't set this server up the first time, so I don't know if there was
something special that needed to happen in order for pre-windows 2000 clients
to be able to access it.

From the windows 98 client in windows explorer I can see this server, but
get an error saying that the machine is not accessable.

I thought this might be where I have to install the DSClient on the 98
machines, and I did that, but to no avail.

This seems like a familiar problem, yet I'm out of ideas. Does anyone have
any ideas as to what might be going on?

 

[Danny Sanders]

Did you install WINS on the server and point your Win 98 clients to the WINS
server?


hth
DDS W 2k MVP MCSE

 

[Guest]

No I didn't. I can install WINS, but am not sure how to go about pointing
the clients to it.

 

[Guest]

Come to think of it, the Windows 98 clients are logging into the network.
They're already WINS clients on the domain controller.

What's odd is I can actually ping this server from the 98 machine using the
server name instead of the IP address. I just can't see the shares on the
server.

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

What happens when you open a DOS prompt on the Win98
machine and type this command:

net use x: \\YourServer\SomeShare

 

[Guest]

I get Error 53: The computer name specified in the network path cannot be
located. Make sure you are specifying the computer name correctly, or try
again later when the remote computer is available.

It's funny that I can ping it by it's name and it comes back just fine.
Something just isn't right here.

 

[Charlie Tame]

Have you looked in services to see if computer browser service is running? I
think that may make a difference (either by design or accident) but do not
know for sure. I take it the 98 machines have not been changed since the
were first set up and working.

The share is set up for read access to "Everyone" is it? Maybe you need the
guest account to be enabled for 98. Oh and I have seen instances where 98
cannot connect - wait 15 - 20 minutes and it can

Charlie

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

I recommend that you delete all networking services and
adapters on the Win98 PC, then re-install them, including
File and Print Sharing.

 

[Guest]

I will look in the services to see if the browser is running.

 

[Guest]

I can try that, but don't understand why I would have to do anything with the
clients since they were able to see this server and map a network drive to
the share on this server. It would seem that there's something on the server
side that isn't set right.

 

[Guest]

There aren't any services in windows 98. I did have a situation that
happened earlier this year where one of these windows 98 machines thought it
was the master browser, and I had to disable it. I can't think for the life
of me how I did that.

I don't want to enable the master browser though, right, that would bring
back that other problem. I'm hoping master browser and browser are 2
different things. Does anybody know where this is in Windows 98?

 

[Guest]

Another observation, server side, not that it matters, but in comparing this
server to a server the windows 98 machine can access, I'm noticing that in
the network connection properties that there's 2 tabs missing on the machine
that's inaccessable to the windows 98 machines. There's only a general tab
on it, and the server that the windows 98 machines can access has a Sharing
and an authentication tab.

What network protocol needs to be installed in order to get these 2 tabs?

 

[Charlie Tame]

File and Printer Sharing for MS Networks and Client for MS Networks are
installed on mine...

Under TCP IP properties I also have Netbios over TCP IP enabled although it
may not be necessary.

I assume this server is NTFS and the permissions are normal but has the
"Workgroup" or anything changed - we're kinda assuming the 98s should
connect because they did before but that is not necessarily the case if
something like that has changed.

Charlie

 

[Guest]

Let me clarify one thing. It would seem that something on the server isn't
right since these clients were able to connect to it before.

 

[Guest]

This server isn't a DC, but because it's got a static IP address, it doesn't
use DHCP. Adding a WINS entry on this server with the DC that's got WINS
setup on it fixed the problem.