Servers at different site aren't showing up in Network Neighborhoo

[Guest]

Our domain is at Site "A" and we recently set up a couple of servers at Site
"B". There is a firewall-to-firewall VPN between the two sites. The servers
at site "B" can see all of the servers at Site "A" when looking in network
neighborhood, but when someone at site A looks in there network neighborhood,
the servers at site B don't show up.

From both sides, I can ping servers in both networks. I have set up DNS
host records on Site A's domain controller for the servers at Site B. From
site A, if I type in the UNC path of a server at site B, it works.

Why can't I see the servers at site B from a computer in Site A's network
neighborhood listing?

 

[Paul Bergson]

WINS

Is your firewall blocking wins traffic? Does the remote sites client point
to a WINS server? Pinging doesn't use NETBIOS so you can ping to your
hearts content at it won't resolve this issue. Open up your WINS console
and evaluate the db and I'll bet you don't see a single machine from your
remote site.

 

[Herb Martin]

WINS

Is your firewall blocking wins traffic? Does the remote sites client point
to a WINS server? Pinging doesn't use NETBIOS so you can ping to your
hearts content at it won't resolve this issue. Open up your WINS console
and evaluate the db and I'll bet you don't see a single machine from your
remote site.

Paul is right. It is almost certainly related to WINS Servers.

BUT since it works from one side and not the other, the
most likely SPECIFIC issue is that the clients NICs on one
side are not set to use the WINS server (same WINS database
actually).

Remember that in "name resolution contexts" the word CLIENT
means pretty much EVER MACHINE, including those you
normally think of as "servers".

If the "servers" are not WINS clients, they will not register
themselves in the WINS server database.

The other major possibility is that you have multiple WINS
servers that are not replicating to form a single WINS
database -- but were that your issue, it would likely fail
similarly on both sides.

 

[Guest]

Okay, I opened the WINS DB and examined it. As you guessed, there wasn't a
static mapping for the two servers at the remote site. I added a static
mapping for the two servers, and they still don't show up in Network
Neighborhood. What ports do I have to have open on the firewalls for WINS to
go through?

 

[Paul Bergson]

Try port 137

You can Google on "wins ports" and find additional info

Remember also do you remote clients have a wins definition, that is
important as well.


Paul Bergson MCT, MCSE, MCSA, CNE, CNA, CCA

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.