Work network as server/clients

[Guest]

I am in charge of a small computer lab at work. We have 5-6 computers (XP
Home, 1.8 Ghz, 224M RAM) and 1 older (Win2k, 333Mhz, 64M RAM) that are hooked
together via a 4-port Cayman DSL Gateway (10/100) and an uplinked old 8-port
(10 only). There is also a printer on this network via the Ethernet
connection.
So my question...
What would I need to do in order to set one computer as a server and create
an account on the server for every individual who uses the lab? I am having
problems with dirty disks and I can't be in the lab all the time it is open.
Several of the lab users won't want to save to a directory anyone can access,
and I don't want people saving to the same directory either. I also have a
program that saves a record of each user that uses the program, and every
time they use a different computer, I have to transfer their file from the
first computer to the second.

Just a little background, this is a computer lab for consumers with
disabilities, so many of them don't know how to use a computer properly or
can't learn that.

 

[Doug Sherman [MVP]]

Well, you don't say whether the Win2k machine is running Professional or
Server. But either way that is the only machine you have that is suitable
for the kind of server you want. You could:

1. On the Win2k machine create user accounts and passwords that match every
XP user account password.

2. On the Win2k machine create and share a folder for each user - the name
of the folder should be exactly the same as the user's logon name. Give
only the corresponding user permissions on the share.

3. On each XP machine place a login script in the All Users startup folder:

net use x: \\Win2kcomputername\%username%

4. Have everybody save files to their X: drive.

All of this is clunky and aggravated by the use of XP Home which only
supports 5 simultaneous network connections. What you are asking for is
precisely the kind of thing that domains as opposed to workgroups are
designed for. In order to have a domain you would need Win2k Server or
Windows Server 2003, AND the workstations would have to be XP Pro or Win2k
Pro.


Doug Sherman
MCSE, MCSA, MCP+I, MVP

 

[Guest]

Okay, I keep reading from this thread and others that I want to create a
logon script, but I can't find anything for HOW to create a logon script.
What is the file name and extension? What do I put inside this file? Is it
plain text?

I'm very computer literate, but this isn't something I know about, and it is
harder to get help in XP than previous versions.

John Rogers

 

[Doug Sherman [MVP]]

OK,


1. On an XP machine, logon with a user account and password - open notepad.

2. type the following text:

net use x: \\Win2kcomputername\%username% - use the real name of the Win2k
machine.

3. Save the file with a name that has a 'bat' extension - eg. login.bat

4. You now have a login script file that maps a virtual drive called X: to
a shared folder that has the same name as the user name you use to log onto
an XP machine.

5. To test the file, create a shared folder on the Win2k machine with the
same name you are going to use to log onto the XP machine. Right click on
the new folder and select Sharing - select to share the file. Create a user
account on the Win2k machine that exactly matches the XP user name and
password. Later on you can restrict the share permissions to only the
appropriate user.

6. On the XP machine, open Windows Explorer and double click on login.bat.
Close and reopen Windows Explorer. Expand My Computer and you should see a
new drive called X:

7. If this works, you can save the file to the user's startup folder or the
All Users startup folder and it will run automatically whenever a user logs
on.

Doug Sherman
MCSE, MCSA, MCP+I, MVP

 

[Guest]

You have been most helpful, Doug. Thank you. Oh yes, the Win2K computer is
running Professional.

John Rogers