Multiple mixed Public/Private networks

[adrianp]

I have a notebook with Vista Home Premium. With a single network
connection, everything is OK (profiles, firewall, etc).
Now I set up a VPN to my office intranet over the public WAN
connection. With my old Windows2000 Pro it worked OK.
Vista Network and Sharing Center shows both connections, one Public
(WAN) and the other Private (VPN).
I have disabled the firewall for the VPN connection (even if this made
Vista absolutely mad).
Even so, I cannot see the computers and shares from the remote
intranet. Network Discovery complains about being a Public space, but
one connection is Private!?!
I can ping computers in the intranet, I get the "internal view"
addresses from the DNS so the connection is working. There is a
Windows2000 based network that I cannot change or reconfigure.
The problem may be with NetBIOS/WINS.

Vista has identified the intranet (over VPN) as "mydomain.net". If I
connect the NIC cable directly into the intranet switch,
"mydomain.net" connection is displayed in N&SC also as Private and I
can browse all computers. Over VPN I cannot. Why?

 

[Robert L [MVP - Networking]]

As you mentioned, it could be the NetBIOS/WINS. Do you have WINS server? Or this search result may help,

Name resolution on VPNName resolution is big issue in VPN access. If your VPN server doesn't setup correctly or the VPN client can't receive the VPN DNS and WINS settings, ...
http://www.chicagotech.net/nameresolutionpnvpn.htm


Bob Lin, MS-MVP, MCSE & CNE
Networking, Internet, Routing, VPN Troubleshooting on http://www.ChicagoTech.net
How to Setup Windows, Network, VPN & Remote Access on http://www.HowToNetworking.com
I have a notebook with Vista Home Premium. With a single network
connection, everything is OK (profiles, firewall, etc).
Now I set up a VPN to my office intranet over the public WAN
connection. With my old Windows2000 Pro it worked OK.
Vista Network and Sharing Center shows both connections, one Public
(WAN) and the other Private (VPN).
I have disabled the firewall for the VPN connection (even if this made
Vista absolutely mad).
Even so, I cannot see the computers and shares from the remote
intranet. Network Discovery complains about being a Public space, but
one connection is Private!?!
I can ping computers in the intranet, I get the "internal view"
addresses from the DNS so the connection is working. There is a
Windows2000 based network that I cannot change or reconfigure.
The problem may be with NetBIOS/WINS.

Vista has identified the intranet (over VPN) as "mydomain.net". If I
connect the NIC cable directly into the intranet switch,
"mydomain.net" connection is displayed in N&SC also as Private and I
can browse all computers. Over VPN I cannot. Why?

 

[adrianp]

Thanks for the answer.

WINS is up and running on DC/VPN server. The VPN client gets the right
intranet address of WINS server (by DHCP option).
One weird thing is that the VPN client gets a new address on each
connection and a bunch of different addresses are regisered in WINS
for the same remote computer (eg. Workstation 00h = x.x.x.205 and
FileServer 20h = x.x.x.209).

Why do I post this on Vista group: because a W2k Pro station WORKS!. I
have connected an intranet computer directly into the WAN switch (with
an external IP) and I can do everything as usual. It even has the
right WINS registration (Workstation, FileServer and Messenger).
Unfortulately I cannot do this test with the Vista computer.

How can I turn Vista in somekind of "backward compatibility mode"?