I have a dell desktop and a dell laptop. I want to be able to share
files and print capablilites. I have dsl connection at my desktop so i
added a wireless router (linksys) I can connect to the internet with
both computers. The desktop was wire directly with the router until i
added a wireless adapter to the desktop so that now both computers are
wireless. The ip address of my router is 192.168.1.1
ip for the desktop is 192.168.1.103 and the laptop is 192.168.1. I
cannot ping the desktop from my laptop or vice versa. I can ping the
router from both systems. HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Looks like you left out the last bit of your laptop's IP address, but we'll
assume it's OK. Standard networking problems cut/paste:
This is most commonly caused by a misconfigured firewall. Run the Network
Setup Wizard on all computers, making sure to enable File & Printer
Sharing, and reboot. The only "gotcha" is that this will turn on the XPSP2
Windows Firewall. If you aren't running a third-party firewall or have an
antivirus with "Internet Worm Protection" (like Norton 2005/06) which acts
as a firewall, then you're fine. If you have third-party firewall software,
configure it to allow the Local Area Network traffic as trusted. I usually
do this with my firewalls with an IP range. Ex. would be
192.168.1.0-192.168.1.254. Obviously you would substitute your correct
subnet.
If one or more of the computers is XP Pro or Media Center:
a. If you need Pro's ability to set fine-grained permissions, turn off
Simple File Sharing (Folder Options>View tab) and create identical user
accounts/passwords on all computers.
b. If you don't care about using Pro's advanced features, leave the Simple
File Sharing enabled.
Simple File Sharing means that Guest (network) is enabled. This means that
anyone without a user account on the target system can use its resources.
This is a security hole but only you can decide if it matters in your
situation.
Then create shares as desired. XP Home does not permit sharing of users'
home directories (My Documents) or Program Files, but you can share folders
inside those directories. A better choice is to simply use the Shared
Documents folder.
If that doesn't work for you, here is an excellent network troubleshooter by
MVP Hans-Georg Michna. Take the time to go through it and it will usually
pinpoint the problem area(s) -
http://winhlp.com/wxnet.htm
Malke
