Weird networking stuff not allowing users to see each other

[Guest]

I have recently installed and configured an office network with a combination
of XP Pro, XP Home and Win 98 SE computers.
It is a peer to peer network connecting through hubs behind a an ADSL modem.
All computers are able to browse the internet and receive/ send emails
without problems, but strange things are happening with the ability of local
machines to see each other across the network.
The network was installed and tested on Monday night, and all machines
seemed to be able to happily see each other, but as the day progresses
limited network visibility is seen between machines upon subsequent reopening
of windows explorer. For instance one machine which could originally see all
nodes could only see a limited number after a reboot (it was rebooted becase
a second machine which was able to see all machines was suddenly unable to
see this first machine). A third machine could see elements of what the
other two machines could see.
I have checked all the ip addresses and subnet masks, and it would appear
that these should all be compatible. As far as I can tell the windows
firewalls are configured to enable file and printer sharing, TCP/IP, and
anyhow it appears that each machine on the network can see various
combinations of others at various times, without any modifications to the
firewall settings.
The peer to peer network has (currently) up to a maximum of 14 nodes, but
not all of these are running concurrently. I understand thet XP Pro and Win
98 should be good for up to 10 simultaneous connections, while XP Home should
be fine for 5. While this may be an issue, I would argue that I am not
necessarily connecting to machines when viewing my workgroup, I have been
able to see up to 12 other workgroup computers at the same time (immediately
after the network was rebooted).
It has me completely stumped, does anyone have any answers?

Thank You in advance..

 

[Chuck]

I have recently installed and configured an office network with a combination
of XP Pro, XP Home and Win 98 SE computers.
It is a peer to peer network connecting through hubs behind a an ADSL modem.
All computers are able to browse the internet and receive/ send emails
without problems, but strange things are happening with the ability of local
machines to see each other across the network.
The network was installed and tested on Monday night, and all machines
seemed to be able to happily see each other, but as the day progresses
limited network visibility is seen between machines upon subsequent reopening
of windows explorer. For instance one machine which could originally see all
nodes could only see a limited number after a reboot (it was rebooted becase
a second machine which was able to see all machines was suddenly unable to
see this first machine). A third machine could see elements of what the
other two machines could see.
I have checked all the ip addresses and subnet masks, and it would appear
that these should all be compatible. As far as I can tell the windows
firewalls are configured to enable file and printer sharing, TCP/IP, and
anyhow it appears that each machine on the network can see various
combinations of others at various times, without any modifications to the
firewall settings.
The peer to peer network has (currently) up to a maximum of 14 nodes, but
not all of these are running concurrently. I understand thet XP Pro and Win
98 should be good for up to 10 simultaneous connections, while XP Home should
be fine for 5. While this may be an issue, I would argue that I am not
necessarily connecting to machines when viewing my workgroup, I have been
able to see up to 12 other workgroup computers at the same time (immediately
after the network was rebooted).
It has me completely stumped, does anyone have any answers?

Thank You in advance..

Andrew,

If you have a constantly changing visibility issue, then the problem is probably
related to the browser subsystem, and a master browser conflict as computers are
started and stopped. If you have a combination of Windows XP and Windows 98
computers, be aware that this is a bad combination for browser stability.
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/windows-9x-9598me-and-browser.html>

To diagnose the problem, run "browstat status" and "browstat listwfw" from the
Windows XP computers. Browstat won't run from Windows 98. Instructions for
getting and running browstat:
<http://nitecruzr.blogspot.com/2005/05/browstat-utility-from-microsoft.html>

 

[Doug Sherman [MVP]]

Most likely this is a browser election conflict; and the most likely
offenders are the Win98 machines. With multiple machines coming on and off
line, the issue can be very difficult to diagnose; and the ultimate answer
may be to remove the capability of all but one or two always-on machines to
become master browsers.

Start by disabling Browse Master on the Win98 machines and see if that
solves the problem:

Control Panel/Network - highlight File and Printer Sharing and click
Properties. Set Browse Master to Disable. Reboot.

Doug Sherman
MCSE, MCSA, MCP+I, MVP