Unable to uncheck "Make this folder private"

[Ray St-Sauveur]

I have a home network, two computers. On the laptop I
suddenly cannot uncheck "Make this folder private" in my
identity. I have gone into Documents and Settings, then
my name. It's the only one there and I'm the computer
administrator. I have tried everything. I recall a
prompt yesterday coming up about making my files private
and I answered yes. I have forgotten where that came
from. I believe I had downloaded some Windows updates.
I'm at a loss and hope someone can help me as I can't
share files the way I'm used to doing. Thanks in advance.

 

[Doug Knox MS-MVP]

XP PRO: In Windows Explorer, go to Tools, Folder Options, View and uncheck
Use Simple File Sharing. Now, when you right click on a drive, folder or
file (on an NTFS partition) and select Properties, you'll see a Security
tab. Here you can assign or deny permissions based on user name or user
group membership.

XP Home: By default, you can only make files and folders under My Documents
"private". This is done by right clicking a folder or file and selecting
Properties, Sharing. To change the permissions on other folders, you need
to boot the computer to Safe Mode and log in on the built in Administrator
account. In this mode, you'll see the Security tab in Properties, and you
can assign permissions based on user name or group membership.

How Do I Get the Security Tab in Properties - XP Home (makes the Security
tab appear outside of Safe Mode)
http://www.dougknox.com, Win XP Tips section

HOW TO: Set, View, Change, or Remove File and Folder Permissions in Windows
XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308418

HOW TO: Set, View, Change, or Remove Special Permissions for Files and
Folders
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;308419

HOW TO: Disable Simplified Sharing and Password-Protect a Shared Folder in
Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;307874