Workgroup Neworking - Can't see a computer

[Paul Goldman]

I have a client with a small workgroup based LAN, with 2 Windows XP Home
computers and 2 Windows 98 computers. Last year I set up the workgroup with
a shared folder for all computers to use (a poor man's server). This small
workgroup was part of a larger network behind a firewall/router with IP
addresses 192.168.x.y.

Yesterday we installed a separate DSL line for this LAN, and since my
internet router was backorder, I decided to plug the PCs into the Netopia
router that SBC supplied. Each of the PCs received a new IP address from the
Netopia router. Before I left for the evening, I made sure that all of the
computers could see the shared folder on the "server".

This afternoon, my client called me telling me he had a "virus" that kept
shutting down his system (the Windows XP home system with the shared
folder), and that he "restored" the system per instructions from Dell. When
I arrived, I found that his machine was infected with a lot of adware, so I
downloaded the new Microsoft Spyware beta and cleaned up his system. Since
then, I cannot get any of the other computers to see the shared folder or
any of the other shared resources on his machine. I can browse from his
machine and can see the shared folder, but cannot from any other machine.
The computer shows up on the Network Neighborhood browser, but no resources
are available.

Any suggestions?

In addition, the other Windows XP Home machine is similarly infected with
Adware. Although I'm not behind a firewall now, how can these machines get
infected so quickly?

 

[Robert Jacobs]

Are you kidding? Visiting one website can infect a computer in seconds with
hundreds of adware files and a firewall will not really stop adware from
infecting a computer.

Your other problem sounds like your file and printer sharing is turned off
on your XP machine, which some adware can do..

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

As far as the shared folder problem, I suggest you redo the network floppy
you made originally and run it again on all the machines.

 

[Paul Goldman]

Thanks for the advice. They have been on the internet for some time (over a
year) behind a firewall (actually a small Netgear internet router). The only
change I made was going to SBC and eliminating the firewall. Are you
suggesting that they picked up the adware before I made the change? (I don't
have day-to-day contact with them. I was brought in for this job).

 

[Robert Jacobs]

More then likely they have been adding to it everyday. I have seen a few of
my clients persistantly have adware on thier system, until I installed
Spyware Doctor on thier systems anyway.

Most just cant understand that just going to one site, even a Big national
Site, can infect thier system with adware.

Did you get the shared folder problem fixed?

 

[Paul Goldman]

Not until I reformatted the hard drive and installed XP Pro. (Works every
time!) I gave up after scanning several times and not being able to even get
onto the internet.