XP Pro Map Network Drive Problem

[Andy]

Hi

I have a small home network with three computers connected via a
single router/modem. There is a laptop and desktop running XP Pro and
a desktop running XP Home. All these computers have had clean Windows
installations during the past 2 months and there have been no changes
made to the network setting. They are all running SP2 with all
critical updates to date.

I have recently connected a small NAS device running Samba and set up
a couple of test shares with Read/Write access and passwords.

All of the computers can see the NAS in My Network Places/Microsoft
Windows Network/Workgroup and I can read and write from/to the shares
shown within this tree from all 3 computers.

The problem arises when I try to Map the shares. The XP Home machine
maps the shares immediately and I can read and write with no problem.
When I try to Map a share from either of the XP Pro machines a panel
comes up saying "Attempting to connect to\\Storage\Laptop..." and
after a minute or so another panel appears showing "The network path
\\Storage\Laptop could not be found." and the NAS device locks up
needing a restart.

All of the computers will Map shares set on any other Windows computer
on the local network without problem.

I have compared all the settings in TCP/IP properties for each
computer and they are identical. I have also compared the entries and
values in the registry
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\netlogon\parameters branch and
they are identical.

All of the computers have Windows Firewall turned off and are using
Outpost Pro firewall at the same build state. I have tried disabling
the firewall but this doesn't make any difference. The firewall logs
don't indicate any blocked activity.

The NAS is a cheapo device based on the RDC R2882 chipset running
Samba server (CIFS/SMB protocols) & FTP. I seem to recall reading
somewhere that it emulates NT4 but I might be wrong.

I am aware that is better network security implemented in XP Pro than
that given with XP Home and am assuming that this is where the problem
lies. Can anyone help by telling me what I need to change to allow
the 'Pro' machines to map these shares? Any help will be greatly
appreciated.

Regards - Andy

 

[Andy]

Hi

I have a small home network....

Omitted info:

I've compared the results from ipconfig /all for all 3 computers and
the settings all match up.

I've tried turning "Use simple file sharing" on and off and that
doesn't make any difference.

Andy

 

[GTS]

I wish every inquiry was as clear and specific as yours!

It's a long shot, but I suggest trying the change covered in "A Windows XP
Client Cannot Log On to a Windows NT 4.0 Domain"
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=318266

I have had to make this change to XP Pro workstations logging into Linux
servers running dated versions of SAMBA with NT (possibly pre SP4) emulation
to fix problems with domain login and drive mapping.

Also, does it make any difference in the messages if you try mapping with
the NAS IP address rather than name?

 

[Andy]

Hi GTS, thanks for your reply.

It's a long shot, but I suggest trying the change covered in "A Windows XP
Client Cannot Log On to a Windows NT 4.0 Domain"
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=318266
No joy with this change.

Also, does it make any difference in the messages if you try mapping with
the NAS IP address rather than name?

Tried mapping with the IP rather than server name and I get exactly
the same response as before: "Attempting to connect
to\\192.168.0.100\Laptop..." then "The network path
\\192.168.0.100\Laptop could not be found."

Andy

 

[Andy]

Hi

I have a small home network...

Another update:

I've run Browstst.exe on one of the Pro machines and the response I
get is:

"Calling NetServerEnum to enumerate WFW servers.
1 WFW servers returned. 1 total.
The following are running the browser:

\\STORAGE W95 04.00 (W,S,WFW,PBR,W95)"


Andy

 

[GTS]

You're welcome. It's an interesting puzzle. I'm out of ideas at the
moment. The fact that the NAS hangs after the attempt to map from the Pro
machines seems especially odd. It would be interesting to see what a
sniffer shows as different between the Home to Pro communications with the
NAS. I don't know how else to narrow it, unless the NAS manufacturer/vendor
has any info.

 

[GTS]

You're welcome. It's an interesting puzzle. I'm out of ideas at the
moment. The fact that the NAS hangs after the attempt to map from the Pro
machines seems especially odd. It would be interesting to see what a
sniffer shows as different between the Home to Pro communications with the
NAS. I don't know how else to narrow it, unless the NAS manufacturer/vendor
has any info.

 

[Andy]

Hi

It would be interesting to see what a
sniffer shows as different between the Home to Pro communications with the
NAS.

I wouldn't mind having a go at this just for interest. Are there any
free sniffers around that are easy to use?

unless the NAS manufacturer/vendor
has any info.

Not much chance, as I said in the OP, it is a 'cheapo' box. The
reference design and firmware seem to be used by quite a few of the
budget Pacific rim firms and I've trawled through quite a few sites
looking for hints without success, I even strayed into the linux.samba
NG last night but I couldn't understand most of the posts!

Thanks again - Andy

 

[GTS]

Ethereal, or it's newer incarnation, wireshark is a well regarded sniffer.
If you do try it, please let us know what you find.
http://www.wireshark.org/
http://www.ethereal.com/

--

 

[Andy]

Ethereal, or it's newer incarnation, wireshark is a well regarded sniffer.
If you do try it, please let us know what you find.
http://www.wireshark.org/
http://www.ethereal.com/

Thanks, I'll have a play and report back.

Cheers - Andy