Jump to content

Welcome to Geeks to Go - Register now for FREE

Need help with your computer or device? Want to learn new tech skills? You're in the right place!
Geeks to Go is a friendly community of tech experts who can solve any problem you have. Just create a free account and post your question. Our volunteers will reply quickly and guide you through the steps. Don't let tech troubles stop you. Join Geeks to Go now and get the support you need!

How it Works Create Account
Photo

discovering computers on network & file/printer sharing


  • Please log in to reply

#1
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
Hi! Haven't had to ask you guys any questions in a long time! That's a good thing. Hopefully you can help with this issue as well as in the past....

Overview: I have connected a new wifi laptop and a new linksys router to my previously working network. Now I have 2 vista computers (one laptop wifi), and 2 xp computers and one printer on the network. Currently, they all connect to the internet (after lots and lots of stressful hours). But, for the most part, they do not see or talk to one another.

I say for the most part because each computer sees a different number of others on the network, and each can access different shared files.

I can give you exact specifics of which does what, just tell me what you need to know.

Liz
  • 0

Advertisements


#2
dsenette

dsenette

    Je suis Napoléon!

  • Community Leader
  • 26,047 posts
  • MVP
Give This tutorial by SpaceCowboy706 a read, it's got just about everything you'd need to know.

when you add computers to a network you've kind of got to make sure they all get setup the same

also...what's the main purpose of your "workgroup"? is it mainly for file and printer sharing?
you might want to think about getting a NAS (Network Attached Storage) system...it's basically a hard drive with a network card...though some of them (most of them now) are getting pretty fancy...you can set up authentication on the devices (to keep the kids out of the financial documents etc...) and they're pretty much plug and play...alot of them now are coming with built in print servers so you can attach printers to them and share them that way...with a NAS and/or a print server you don't have to worry about the "host" being on either....just leave the NAS on all the time and y ou're always connected...some of the fancier ones also allow you to access them easily from OUTSIDE (say you're at mom's house and you want to show her some pictures of the new stove but you forgot to bring them with....just connect to the NAS from outside through whateve rmethod it provides and you're good to go)

it's my opinion that the old fashioned windows workgroup (what you've got set up) is dead.
  • 0

#3
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Topic Starter
  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
Hi, Thanks for the quick response.

I've been through the network setup tutorial. Before I added the wireless laptop and new router I was sharing correctly between all the computers. I'm wondering if there is a hardware problem with my router. Is there an easy way to determine that?
  • 0

#4
dsenette

dsenette

    Je suis Napoléon!

  • Community Leader
  • 26,047 posts
  • MVP
.....well...you could try with a different router if you've got one near by....though.....i would doubt that this is router related....it's probably more of a setting or something on one of the machines
  • 0

#5
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Topic Starter
  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
If one of the machines were setup incorrectly, could that distrub how all the others interract?
  • 0

#6
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Topic Starter
  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
More info, update:

2 machines (C1 and C2), 1 xp, 1 vista, can see and view shared folders on the other 2 machines (C3 and C4), also 1 xp, 1 vista.

The 2 machines than can view the others, C1 and C2, cannot be viewed at all by anyone. C1 and C2 are not seen as located on the network, in fact, even pinging to them fails.

All the machines are in the same workgroup and all have the same file sharing configurations. All machine have internet access.

Any ideas out there???????
  • 0

#7
dsenette

dsenette

    Je suis Napoléon!

  • Community Leader
  • 26,047 posts
  • MVP
check the firewalls on the c1 and c2 machines (windows firewall and any other firewalls)....do you have file and printer sharing allowed there? try completelly disabeling the windows firewall on those two machines and see if there's a difference
  • 0

#8
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Topic Starter
  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
c1 is fixed, the xp unit. I checked the firewalls, but that didn't change anything. I use Macafee security center, and in there I was able to go into advanced security settings and enabled the ICMP, which allows the computer to be pinged. All other security levels stayed the same and the firewall is still on, but now I can accss C1 from all the other computers. ..... I tried the same exact thing on C2, but that didn't work - yet. This one's the vista and maybe I need to tweak the settings a bit more.

I'll report back when I find the final fix.
  • 0

#9
dsenette

dsenette

    Je suis Napoléon!

  • Community Leader
  • 26,047 posts
  • MVP
i'm stickin with the firewall plan hehe unfortunatly i haven't played with vista as much as i need to....so i can' help much on th efirewall configs there
  • 0

#10
hfcg

hfcg

    The hippie freak computer geek

  • Member
  • PipPipPipPipPip
  • 2,496 posts
with the vista machine,please go into control panel, network and sharing and turn on network discovery.
  • 0

#11
lizzyborden

lizzyborden

    Member

  • Topic Starter
  • Member
  • PipPip
  • 14 posts
Been there done that - many times over! This machine was accessible on the network prior to installing the new router. I triple checked that network discovery was on with no password and turn on file sharing...... None of that has worked yet.

Since I was able to fix the xp by enabling ICMP, I'm thinking the problem might be somewhere within that area of internet security.
  • 0






Similar Topics

0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users

As Featured On:

Microsoft Yahoo BBC MSN PC Magazine Washington Post HP