Final Answer, can it or can't it share!

  • Thread starter Thread starter Wendie
  • Start date Start date
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Wendie

I have a big problem with XP and our home network. I
have read most of the posts here about file sharing and
LAN access but opinion seems to be mixed. We have one PC
and three laptops, all on the same workgroup name,
exactly the same name accounts set up on all three XP
home machines and the one laptop with Win2K, guest
accounts enabled for all, firewall turned off, files set
to share, everyone with admin rights, and the darn thing
is a mess. All the accounts and file shares were set up
exactly the same way and yet only some users can access
some files and this differs from every machine! It isn't
the same on any machine. There doesn't seem to be any
reason for it and we are pulling our hair out. Why the
hell did they change the software so you can't have
straightforward users? The only thing we can do is
access shared documents from every machine. Someone said
in a thread that you can't share files on the C drive
other than shared documents file with XP home. But we can
get some of the files to share so I find that hard to
believe. It is driving us nuts. Can you set up a home
network with XP home and have all users sharing all
files? I have been to all the links listed on other
threads, run the network setup wizard, wiped it out and
tried again. I would appreciate any help on this!
Thanks
Wendie
 
Wendie said:
I have a big problem with XP and our home network. I
have read most of the posts here about file sharing and
LAN access but opinion seems to be mixed. We have one PC
and three laptops, all on the same workgroup name,
exactly the same name accounts set up on all three XP
home machines and the one laptop with Win2K, guest
accounts enabled for all, firewall turned off, files set
to share, everyone with admin rights, and the darn thing
is a mess. All the accounts and file shares were set up
exactly the same way and yet only some users can access
some files and this differs from every machine! It isn't
the same on any machine. There doesn't seem to be any
reason for it and we are pulling our hair out. Why the
hell did they change the software so you can't have
straightforward users? The only thing we can do is
access shared documents from every machine. Someone said
in a thread that you can't share files on the C drive
other than shared documents file with XP home. But we can
get some of the files to share so I find that hard to
believe. It is driving us nuts. Can you set up a home
network with XP home and have all users sharing all
files?
Click to expand...

Wendie,

no, Windows XP Home (or XP Pro with Simple File Sharing) cannot
share certain first level folders and, I think, also not the
root of the disk.

The idea of Simple File Sharing is to share the shared documents
and put everything you want to share into that folder.

Please have a look at http://www.michna.com/kb/WxNetwork.htm for
some more details.

Hans-Georg
 
Thanks, I'll have a look at it. i don't understand why
we can get some of them to access folders that aren't
created in their account on the other machine. Some can
and some can't and it differs from machine to machine!
Oh well, guess we have to be disciplined about saving
them to shared docs.
thanks again
-----Original Message-----


Wendie,

no, Windows XP Home (or XP Pro with Simple File Sharing) cannot
share certain first level folders and, I think, also not the
root of the disk.

The idea of Simple File Sharing is to share the shared documents
and put everything you want to share into that folder.

Please have a look at
Click to expand...
http://www.michna.com/kb/WxNetwork.htm for
 
Wendie,

You have my deepest sympathy.

I too have been wrestling with this problem for weeks
now. In my opinion its unsolvable at our level. MS needs
to address this problem. Just look at the number of posts
here on the same subject. I have great respect for the
likes of Steve Winograd (and others) but none of their
suggestions will work for me.

I have been networking PC's since Windows for Workgroups.
WinXP needs to go back to the drawing board. What was
wrong with the previous incarnation - nothing! Why fix
something that isn't broke?

I now feel that I have wasted my money in buying a new
laptop, complete with WinXP (no choice), just because my
old machine was slow. At least it worked when I switched
it on and I had immediate access to mapped drives on my
network.

Fred
 
Fred said:
Wendie,

You have my deepest sympathy.

I too have been wrestling with this problem for weeks
now. In my opinion its unsolvable at our level. MS needs
to address this problem. Just look at the number of posts
here on the same subject. I have great respect for the
likes of Steve Winograd (and others) but none of their
suggestions will work for me.

I have been networking PC's since Windows for Workgroups.
WinXP needs to go back to the drawing board. What was
wrong with the previous incarnation - nothing! Why fix
something that isn't broke?

I now feel that I have wasted my money in buying a new
laptop, complete with WinXP (no choice), just because my
old machine was slow. At least it worked when I switched
it on and I had immediate access to mapped drives on my
network.

Fred
Click to expand...

I will have to disagree. I have an XP Home network. Common workgroup,
separate and unique usernames, and can share files among all 5 of my
computers. Have you installed File and Printer Sharing protocol in your
network connections? Have you selected to share files there, and then
for each directory to be shared, selected sharing from the properties?
We share My docs, my pics, the entire C:\ on all of these computers. We
have never used the shared docs folders since it introduces another
level of annoyance.

Q
 
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