Damaged Config

[Keef]

Can anyone tell me how to unscramble a non-working LAN setup? It did work, sort of, but doesn't any more.

I bought my daughter (she's 35) a laptop last month, and was so impressed with it, I bought myself one too. Obviously, it needs to be networked into the home machine (which has a 4-port modem router, so no problem doing it). I did that OK for daughter's machine (linked both ways, so I could transfer her stuff off my desktop to the laptop, and print back the other way). That laptop is now 300 miles away and being used well. So I can't get hold of it to see what that working configuration is on it.

Setting up the network for MY laptop one way was easy - the base machine could see the shared drives on the laptop. BUT the laptop couldn't see the desktop machine at all. I'm pretty sure I set it all up OK - the network had that imaginative name "MSHOME" and the machines have different and imaginative names, just as with daughter's laptop.

But whatever I did, the laptop couldn't see the desktop, and more to the point couldn't use the printer on the desktop.

After a few hours of trying varying combinations, I added a user profile on the desktop for the laptop to log onto. That didn't work either (I couldn't find how to tell the laptop to log on).

So I deleted the user profile ... but picked the wrong one :-(((((
I deleted the main profile that I use on the desktop. After that NOTHING worked. Some stuff I got back quite quickly, but Word and Excel were reet bolshie, and getting the desktop and XP settings back how I like them was a nightmare. A day's work it took to get things more or less back to normal. Don't want to do that again!

However, now there's no connection whatever between the laptop and the desktop. Each can see "MSHOME" and its own shared folders, but not the other machine. I tried removing MSHOME and calling it KEEF (including rebooting the machines to make sure it had "taken"). No joy.

So - can any Networking expert tell me how to get the pesky duo talking to each other, while still also accessing the Internet?

The hardware: an ADSL modem/router of unknown parentage, but works fine for internet access for both machines.

A NIC card in the desktop - cheapo 10/100 card, but worked OK with daughter's machine and works fine to the internet.

Laptop - IBM ThinkPad R31 (10/100 LAN built in).

Both machines using Win XP Pro (licenced, paid for!)

Present config:
- On the desktop: Network Connections - LAN (name chosen by the NIC card software) - Client Service for Netware, Client for Microsoft Networks, QOSD Packet Scheduler, File and Printer sharing for Microsoft Networks, Microsoft iPv6 Developer Edition, Network Monitor Driver, NWLink NetBIOS, NWLink IPX/SPX/NetBIOS Compatible Transport Protocol, and INternet Protocol (TCP/IP). That lot is what the Win XP Pro decided it wanted to install - I had little vote in the matter. I haven't removed any, pending advice from them as knows.

- On the laptop: "Local Area Connection" (name chosen by something internal) - Client for Microsoft Networks, File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks, QoS Packet Scheduler, Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).

Both machines can access the internet fine via the router (I don't want to interfere with that).

Once I've got this sorted, I'll set up the modem in the laptop so that I can do dialup, and also set up the bluetooth dongle to use the cellphone and GPRS when wires aren't to be had.

Any advice, questions, suggestions, gratefully received. Just don't suggest wiping either machine and starting again!

Thanks,

Keef

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Keef,

Lets get back to basics on both machines:

Client for Microsoft Networks
File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks
QoS Packet Scheduler
Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)

If there is anything else in your network settings, delete it.

Then pick the folder you want to share and click on sharing. Put the check mark on Share this Folder on the Network. If you see a letter with a $ on it, as in C$, then remove the "$". Now go to the other computer and see if you can map it.

Take Care,

Richard

[fobotcso]

Keef, been there, done that, got the tee...

As well as Richard's suggestions, I've had these problems so often now that I always check that one of the machines - usually the laptop - hasn't got a "Bridge" in the Network Connections. If it has delete it. Your laptop and desktop may be looking for each other on different LANs.

Right click on the Network Connections that you think should work and click "Repair".

Good Luck.

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Keef,

fobotcso has a very good suggestion, and if the NIC on the Notebook is in Bridge mode, and his fix solves the problem, I still want you to remove the extra protocols on the Desktop. There is no need to be running all the extra Protocols.

Take Care,

Richard

[Keef]

I just typed a long reply, then in checking the last thing to put into it, something crashed the desktop :(

Thanks for all those suggestions (and for the others PM'ed to me). Some easy bits of the problem are fixed - the config screwup had reset ZoneAlarm so that the LAN and all on it was outside the trusted zone. Fixed that.

The two machines can now ping each other fine.

The desktop can "see" the laptop and attach its drives, but not the other way round.

Richard - I can't remove the $ from the sharing of folders. I can delete the C$ D$ etc sharings, but get a long error message when I do so, and they come back again when I reboot.

If I go through "My Network Places", to "Entire Network", then double-click MicrosoftWindows Network, then the network name, the laptop sees the desktop there. Double-clicking the desktop brings up a long message ending "The user has not been granted the requested logon type at this computer."

Doing the same on the desktop shows the laptop and allows attaching to it.

Net view from desktop to laptop is OK, but laptop to desktop brings up "System Error 5 has occurred. Access is denied."

I can move stuff from desktop to laptop, so one bit of the problem's fixed. But I can't print from the laptop, which is a pain.

Frustrating, this computing lark!

The Bluetooth modem arrived for the laptop and I can now surf and e-mail from it - but that too isn't straightforward: I have to use O2's SMTP server rather than my own; since I don't have an O2 email address, replying to those e-mails doesn't work. Early days with that - I've invented a workaround that does the job.

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Keef,

If you cannot remove the $ then try pressing the button marked New Share. That should let you setup the share without the $.

Take Care,

Richard

[fobotcso]

I wonder if you're using NTFS on that curmudgeonly Desktop. If you are, you can attack the Security (in Properties) as well as the Shares. Assuming you are logged on as the Administrator, you can give all Users ("Everyone") all rights to the whole PC. If it's using FAT32 this option isn't available. When you are setting up the Desktop's drives you need to propagate all permissions to Child objects as well.

There are other default XP restrictions to grapple with. If you are logged on as Administrator and not with a real name (such as Keef), certain folders are barred to visitors from the Network. They are Documents and Settings, Windows and, from memory, Program Files. (Don't hold me to the last one.)

I wasn't sure about Richard's idea of deleting the $ in the share. The default share for all drives is "$"something. Normally this share is invisible to all users except Administrators and then only for Admin purposes.

A User-friendly share name is what is needed.

[Oops, sorry Richard, overlapped with you there! :O ]

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

fobotcso,

The $ usually keeps the sharing as internal to that computer and does not let other computers share. That was why I wanted to make sure it was removed. (Especially when running a Domain.)

Take Care,

Richard

[Keef]

What a fun day I've had!

I set up two new accounts on the desktop - "Keef" (Admin) and "Me" (not admin). The machine set them both up with basic Win XP configs, but neither was accessible from the laptop. "Me" also wasn't allowed to use any of the Office XP, or my Mozilla mail ID, or anything much else, either.

I conclude that whatever removing that User did, it was pretty dire. I'll live with not being able to network the laptop to the desktop (until, maybe, I get a new desktop and can do some hefty CDROM file transfers). Meanwhile, most of the desktop config is back to how it was - the synch to the iPaq was working, then ActiveSynch crashed. That screwed something up in a big way, and I've not got to the bottom of that yet.

Yes, the laptop uses NTFS and the old desktop doesn't. There is no bridge that I can see - there's not enough stuff there to provide one.

I dug around in the Control Panel/Admin Tools and found a lot of red-marked events, mostly missing files or settings. Now reading the instructions and doing a gradual patch job there - and removing some.

Apart from that, it's been a pretty quiet day.

[fobotcso]

Well Keef, you'll be familiar with the saying:

"My mother told me there would be days like this" :mad:

Unless you have a special reason for wanting the desktop to use FAT32, you should convert to NTFS and reduce the security restrictions. If you convert using XP's Disk Management it's a one-way operation. You can read about it by entering this in the Search Window in Help and Support Center (sic):

"fat32 to ntfs"

The routine is carried out from the Command Prompt because it has to be done at Boot Time and not from within Windows.

But PowerQuest's Partition Magic will allow you to convert back again if you feel strongly about it. I'd rather use Partition Magic.

fobs

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Keef,

You could always try booting into Safe Mode with Networking (as long as you remember the Admin Password you used when you installed WinXP) and then from there see what kind of access you have over the network.

Take Care,

Richard

[The Nr Fairy]

Keef:

The C$ and D$ shares are automatically created on startup, by the OS, as "admin" shares for backups and the like.

Check http://snakefoot.fateback.com/tweak/winnt/sharing.html tip 2 on how to stop this happening, if you wish.

[Keef]

Nr Fairy - that cracked it! I browsed around that document, which led me to the security settings in Admin Tools. All I had to do was to add the Network name and the Laptop name to "Access this computer from the network" and we're in business! Easy!

Thanks everyone - I'm happy! Just about got back the config that I deleted last week.

Not done Sunday's sermon yet, though!

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Keef,

That is great news! :ok:

Take Care,

Richard

[fobotcso]

An excellent result and an excellent link Nr Fairy.

So much to learn and so little time....

fobs

[The Nr Fairy]

I can't take the credit for the excellence of the link - I was merely searching for a web page with the info I needed and posted the first one I found !

[Saab Dastard]

The $ usually keeps the sharing as internal to that computer and does not let other computers share.

Sorry, Richard - just have to correct this:

The $ simply makes the share hidden. You can make any share hidden by putting a dollar sign after it. It is perfectly simple to connect to the C$ / D$ or any other admin share over a network - \\servername\c$ and supply the admin (or domain admin) password.

Te NR Fairy is quite correct in saying that the OS automatically creates the C$ etc. shares as admin shares.

SD

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Saab Dastard,

With WinXP I have had problems with people's systems when they have the hidden shares. (Usually on Domains.) By removing the hidden shares, it enabled the other computers on the network to have access. It was worth a try, but good thing The Nr Fairy joined in with the link to the solution for this problem. :ok:

Take Care,

Richard