D
Dan Balter
I have a client with simply 2 brand new Compaq Presario
desktop PC's -- both identical -- running Windows XP Pro
(upgraded from XP Home) with 512 MB RAM, Pentium 4 - 2.4
Ghz, and 120 GB hard drives. They also have Realtek NICs
and I've updated the NIC drivers already. I also installed
new NetGear NICs and disabled the onboard RealTeks.
The client has a brand new NetGear 10/100 Mbps switch, all
cabling is CAT 5. Whenever they go to access a folder
over the network that contains 1,000 or 2,000 files, it
takes between ten and twenty seconds for those objects to
appear using My Computer or Windows Explorer. It seems to
take even longer when accessing those folders over the
network from MS Word, using File, Open. Does not matter
what VIEW we use either. This happens even if we connect
both PCs via a crossover cable.
However, if we hook up a Windows 2000 PC, a Windows Server
2003 PC, or even an OLD Windows 98 PC, it opens those
folders over the network instantly! And, on the local
machine, access is super fast. Also, we installed a
different hard drive with Windows XP on it (just for
kicks) that is fast on another computer, and still
performance over the network is slow. It seems that
either the NIC or the motherboard is part of the problem,
but we don't know for sure. A new Dell notebook running
XP is also slow opening those same folders over the
network!
Nothing that we've tried has worked. Here's what we've
tried:
1) The first thing I would check is if netbios over
tcp/ip is enabled on both machines. Many will argue that
it is no longer needed but that is not what my testing has
revealed.
2) Turn off simple file sharing, to allow classic file
sharing based on username other than Guest and password,
go to Start, Control Panel, Folder Options, View, and
uncheck "Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended)". Click on
OK. Then reboot.
3) What Virus scanning software is installed on the
systems? Has it been reinstalled since the "upgrade" to XP
pro? I would recommend uninstalling it and reinstalling it
with a reboot in between. Please be sure it is then
updated with all the recommended virus definitions and
engine upgrade the vendor recommends (there are a few
particularly bad bugs going around right now)
4) On the XP operating system a unique "feature" I have
seen cause problems it the c:\windows\prefetch folder I
would delete all the items in that folder. They will
dynamically recreate any required files and I have seen
this "clean up" resolve several explorer performance
issues.
5) Make sure you install the latest service pack for
Windows XP and for Office XP.
6) You had mentioned that performance is worse on the
network. The following command will reset the TCP/IP stack
to the original configuration as far as all performance
settings (in Windows 2000 the equivalent would be
reinstalling TCP/IP, which cannot be done in XP). type the
following from a command prompt
netsh int ip reset c:\resetlog.txt
8) As a last resort you could try disabling the indexing
service, ironically on very large file structures it slows
down performance. The downside is you will not be able to
perform searches of the file system on the machine it is
disabled on.
9) Run adaware, it can e obtained from
http://www.lavasoft.de/software/adaware/ The standard
version is a free download, you never know what it might
find.
desktop PC's -- both identical -- running Windows XP Pro
(upgraded from XP Home) with 512 MB RAM, Pentium 4 - 2.4
Ghz, and 120 GB hard drives. They also have Realtek NICs
and I've updated the NIC drivers already. I also installed
new NetGear NICs and disabled the onboard RealTeks.
The client has a brand new NetGear 10/100 Mbps switch, all
cabling is CAT 5. Whenever they go to access a folder
over the network that contains 1,000 or 2,000 files, it
takes between ten and twenty seconds for those objects to
appear using My Computer or Windows Explorer. It seems to
take even longer when accessing those folders over the
network from MS Word, using File, Open. Does not matter
what VIEW we use either. This happens even if we connect
both PCs via a crossover cable.
However, if we hook up a Windows 2000 PC, a Windows Server
2003 PC, or even an OLD Windows 98 PC, it opens those
folders over the network instantly! And, on the local
machine, access is super fast. Also, we installed a
different hard drive with Windows XP on it (just for
kicks) that is fast on another computer, and still
performance over the network is slow. It seems that
either the NIC or the motherboard is part of the problem,
but we don't know for sure. A new Dell notebook running
XP is also slow opening those same folders over the
network!
Nothing that we've tried has worked. Here's what we've
tried:
1) The first thing I would check is if netbios over
tcp/ip is enabled on both machines. Many will argue that
it is no longer needed but that is not what my testing has
revealed.
2) Turn off simple file sharing, to allow classic file
sharing based on username other than Guest and password,
go to Start, Control Panel, Folder Options, View, and
uncheck "Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended)". Click on
OK. Then reboot.
3) What Virus scanning software is installed on the
systems? Has it been reinstalled since the "upgrade" to XP
pro? I would recommend uninstalling it and reinstalling it
with a reboot in between. Please be sure it is then
updated with all the recommended virus definitions and
engine upgrade the vendor recommends (there are a few
particularly bad bugs going around right now)
4) On the XP operating system a unique "feature" I have
seen cause problems it the c:\windows\prefetch folder I
would delete all the items in that folder. They will
dynamically recreate any required files and I have seen
this "clean up" resolve several explorer performance
issues.
5) Make sure you install the latest service pack for
Windows XP and for Office XP.
6) You had mentioned that performance is worse on the
network. The following command will reset the TCP/IP stack
to the original configuration as far as all performance
settings (in Windows 2000 the equivalent would be
reinstalling TCP/IP, which cannot be done in XP). type the
following from a command prompt
netsh int ip reset c:\resetlog.txt
8) As a last resort you could try disabling the indexing
service, ironically on very large file structures it slows
down performance. The downside is you will not be able to
perform searches of the file system on the machine it is
disabled on.
9) Run adaware, it can e obtained from
http://www.lavasoft.de/software/adaware/ The standard
version is a free download, you never know what it might
find.