networking

[Slinky]

I'm trying to network 3 new hp computers (which have Vista Home Premium), to
a network that already has three computers on it (which have Windows 2000).
I plan to replace the three old ones, when we get the new ones up and
running, but I'm having difficulty.
I've finally been able to get the computers to show up on my new computer,
but I can't even get that far with the other two computers. I'm also having
no luck on connecting to the other new computer that I can see in the network
(that's as far as I can get).
Anyone know what I should be doing? We don't have IT staff here, so I'm
trying to figure it out on my own.
I've named the workgroup the same as what the old one is called, and I've
named the network itself the same. I can't figure out what could be
preventing them from showing up on the network. One of the other new
computers lists itself as the only computer in the network; the other one
doesn't even list itself in the list. They are both connecting to the
internet just fine.
Any assistance that could be provided to me would be GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks in advance!!

 

[Malke]

I'm trying to network 3 new hp computers (which have Vista Home Premium),
to a network that already has three computers on it (which have Windows
2000). I plan to replace the three old ones, when we get the new ones up
and running, but I'm having difficulty.
I've finally been able to get the computers to show up on my new computer,
but I can't even get that far with the other two computers. I'm also
having no luck on connecting to the other new computer that I can see in
the network (that's as far as I can get).
Anyone know what I should be doing? We don't have IT staff here, so I'm
trying to figure it out on my own.
I've named the workgroup the same as what the old one is called, and I've
named the network itself the same. I can't figure out what could be
preventing them from showing up on the network. One of the other new
computers lists itself as the only computer in the network; the other one
doesn't even list itself in the list. They are both connecting to the
internet just fine.
Any assistance that could be provided to me would be GREATLY appreciated.
Thanks in advance!!

Here are general network troubleshooting steps. Not everything may be
applicable to your situation, so just take the bits that are. It may look
daunting, but if you follow the steps at the links and suggestions below
systematically and calmly, you will have no difficulty in setting up your
sharing.

Excellent, thorough, yet easy to understand article about File/Printer
Sharing in Vista. Includes details about sharing printers as well as files
and folders:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb727037.aspx

For Win2k, start by making sure file/printer sharing is enabled on all
machines and that user accounts/passwords match.

Problems sharing files between computers on a network are generally caused
by 1) a misconfigured firewall or overlooked firewall (including a stateful
firewall in a VPN); or 2) inadvertently running two firewalls such as the
built-in Windows Firewall (not available in Win2k) and a third-party
firewall; and/or 3) not having identical user accounts and passwords on all
Workgroup machines; 4) trying to create shares where the operating system
does not permit it.

A. Configure firewalls on all machines to allow the Local Area Network (LAN)
traffic as trusted. With third-party firewalls, I usually configure the
LAN allowance with an IP range. Ex. would be 192.168.1.0-192.168.1.254.
Obviously you would substitute your correct subnet. Do not run more than
one firewall. DO NOT TURN OFF FIREWALLS; CONFIGURE THEM CORRECTLY.

B. For ease of organization, put all computers in the same Workgroup. This
is done from the System applet in Control Panel, Computer Name tab.

C. Create matching user accounts and passwords on all machines. You do not
need to be logged into the same account on all machines and the passwords
assigned to each user account can be different; the accounts/passwords just
need to exist and match on all machines. DO NOT NEGLECT TO CREATE
PASSWORDS, EVEN IF ONLY SIMPLE ONES. If you wish a machine to boot directly
to the Desktop (into one particular user's account) for convenience, you
can do this. The instructions at this link work for both XP and Vista:

Configure Windows to Automatically Login (MVP Ramesh) -
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/Autologon.htm

Malke