XP PPTP VPN Share Problem

[Bob]

After having my associate clean up his machine, we connected. There
was something blocking GRE and he must have removed it - a firewall
probably.

However, I cannot map the share. In fact I can't even browse his
machine. I am connected to nothing, it would seem.

When we tested a VPN connection on my Win2K VPN Server the other day,
he was able to map a share without any problems. Now I can't do it for
his machine. And I can't do it for another test machine set up on
Win2K.

This problem has been around for eons. Can anyone tell me the
solution. Thanks.


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[Manjari Bonam [MSFT]]

WHat are the errors you are seeing here?

 

[Bob]

WHat are the errors you are seeing here?

I make the PPTP VPN connection successfully between my Win2K Pro VPN
Client computer at home and an XP Home VPN Server at the office.

I try to map a share to "\\server\share" (where "server" is the
computer name and "share" is the share name) on the VPN Server. I get
the following error:

"The Network Path Cannot Be Found".

Just the other day I set up the VPN Server on my home computer and my
associate set up the VPN Client on his home computer. He connected to
my computer immediately and was able to map the share without any
problems. Now we can't get it to work.

I asked someone in another location to set up a Win2K VPN Server at
their home and I connected to it immediately. However I am unable to
map a share.

Is there something wrong with the way I set up my VPN Client? We all
used the same procedures for setting up the VPN Client. I know because
I have a set of screenshots on a private website and we all used them
to set up the VPN Server and Client.

If I put "\\server" in Network Search, I cannot find either VPN
Server. It's as if I have connected to nothing.

I have run into this before but it has been several years and I cannot
remember how I solved it. Your assistance would be appreciated.

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[Sharoon Shetty K [MSFT]]

Is this problem only when you use the server name or is it with IP address
also? If it is only with server name then there is some problem with the
name resolution.

--

Thanks
Sharoon
(e-mail address removed)

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

 

[Bob]

Is this problem only when you use the server name or is it with IP address
also? If it is only with server name then there is some problem with the
name resolution.

I am glad you mentioned that. I had forgotten to try the raw IP
address.

When I use the raw IP address I get a notification from Kerio firewall
that it needs to create a rule to let "Windows Explorer" have access
outside my machine. When I grant that permission, I get the share tree
I expect. IOW, it is now working as expected.

Now that Windows has informed me that I need to poke a hole in the
firewall, I tried to map the share. It still gives me the same error I
reported earlier, namely that it cannot find "\\server\share".

I know I have the correct names for "\\server\share" because I can see
the names when I use the raw IP to gain access.

So why is the VPN "\\server\share" name not resolving?


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You know you are in Hell when you have to make a
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[ppointer]

I know I have the correct names for "\\server\share" because I can see
the names when I use the raw IP to gain access.

So why is the VPN "\\server\share" name not resolving?

This sounds like a DNS problem to me. Is the IP address of your LAN DNS
server included in your WAN settings?

 

[Bob]

This sounds like a DNS problem to me. Is the IP address of your LAN DNS
server included in your WAN settings?

Yes, both entries for DNS IP in the VPN Client are identical to those
in my Local Area Connection.

The irony is that when I set up the VPN Server on my machine and my
associate set up the VPN Client on his machine at home, he was able to
resolve my computer name. He was able to map the share I created for
him by using \\servername\sharename, where "servername" was the
Full Computer Name for my machine.

Now that I am the VPN Client, I can't resolve computer names on either
his machine at the office or someone elses at their home. It's as if
the problem is on my end. Yet I can access the shares on both machines
if I use the raw IP address for the VPN Server machine, both of which
are 192.168.1.100.

Why does name resolution work in one situation but not in two others?




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You know you are in Hell when you have to make a
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[ppointer]

Why does name resolution work in one situation but not in two others?

Got me stumped. The only other thing I would consider is to enable NetBIOS.

 

[Bob]

Got me stumped. The only other thing I would consider is to enable NetBIOS.

NetBIOS is enabled for my Local Area Connection. The checkbox for
"Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP" is checked. The other two below it are
not checked.

There is no provision for NetBIOS in the VPN Client Connection.

There is clearly something different between XP VPN Client and Win2K
VPN Client. I am running Win2K VPN Client and I cannot resolve names
on either an XP VPN Server or a Win2K VPN Server. Yet my associate can
resolve names using an XP VPN Client connected to my Win2K VPN Server.

Could it be that Microsoft fixed a Win2K bug with XP?

Naw.


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Map Of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy:
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You know you are in Hell when you have to make a
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[Jeffrey Randow (MVP)]

Broadcast name resolution is not supported over a VPN... (i.e., not a
bug).

Jeffrey Randow (Windows Net. & Smart Display MVP)
(e-mail address removed)

Please post all responses to the newsgroups for the benefit
of all USENET users. Messages sent via email may or may not
be answered depending on time availability....

Remote Networking Technology Support Site -
http://www.remotenetworktechnology.com
Windows XP Expert Zone - http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone

 

[Bob]

Broadcast name resolution is not supported over a VPN... (i.e., not a
bug).

It does for XP - but not for Win2K.

We have an XP VPN Client where we can type "\\servername" (where
"servername is the Full Computer Name of the VPN Server) in Start|Run
and it will bring up all the shares on the VPN Server.

We can't do that with a Win2K VPN Client - we have to use the raw IP
address for that machine on the VPN, which is 192.168.1.100.

I do not have access to an XP machine at the moment, so why don't you
look in the VPN Client under WINS and see if there is mention of
NetBIOS (like there is for the LAN). My Win2K Client has no mention of
NetBIOS in the WINS panel - the last thing is mention of LMHOSTS and
then the bottom half of that panel is blank. If there is a checkbox
for NetBIOS, check it and see if name resolution now works.

Let us know what you find.


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Map Of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy:
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You know you are in Hell when you have to make a
distinction between what is moral and what is legal.

 

[Bob]

Broadcast name resolution is not supported over a VPN... (i.e., not a
bug).

I looked at an XP PPTP VPN Client and sure enough on the WINS panel
there it was - NetBIOS. That's why you can do name resolution.

It was deliberately left off the Win2K PPTP VPN Client. That's why you
cannot do name resolution.

Microsoft has had 4 Service Packs to fix this glaring deficiency on
Win2K, but has chosen not to. They want to force you to buy XP, if you
must have name resolution.

Fortunately I don't - I use raw IP addresses anyway. The VPN Server is
always the first address in the range of addresses you configure for
the VPN - and therefore it is static for the VPN - and if you
configure the VPN correctly you can set up a static IP address for the
VPN Client.

Now all you need to do is use those raw IP addresses to access the
shares on either machine, e.g. \\192.168.1.100, etc.

I find it a bit strange that no one on these forums knew all this.


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Map Of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy:
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You know you are in Hell when you have to make a
distinction between what is moral and what is legal.

 

[Jeffrey Randow (MVP)]

See my last post to you... For most people, it is the converse (by
design).

 

[Bob]

See my last post to you... For most people, it is the converse (by
design).

I do not know which one you are referring to.

Please post your reply here.

Thanks.

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"You can all go to hell, and I will go to Texas."
--David Crockett

 

[Bob]

I do not know which one you are referring to.

Please post your reply here.

Thanks.

Never mind - I found the post you were referring to and I posted a
reply to that post.

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Map Of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy:
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"You can all go to hell, and I will go to Texas."
--David Crockett