Problems setting up small home network in XP

[XMan]

Originally posted by: SuperMachoMan
So do you have ICS enabled or not?

If you have ICS enabled on the first computer then you need to enable DHCP ("Obtain an IP address automatically") on the second computer.

As far as getting the two computers to see each other, have you tried conecting them directly? I believe you would just use a straight thru cable if you are using ICS, otherwise you would need a crossover cable.

Or maybe check to see if you are using the uplink port on the switch. If you are using ICS, I am thinking you should be connecting the computers through two regular ports.

Also (just to be sure) you have shared the folders/drives you want to access, right?

Yes I have tried connecting them directly, and that worked. Unfortunately, the goal here is to have the computers about 100 feet apart. For that reason I used a hub - I have a 100 foot Cat5 line running from the house to the computer in the garage and ending at the hub. If I bring the laptop down to the garage, I'll plug it into another port on the switch.

The uplink port on a switch is for using a crossover cable to connect it to other switches. There are no uplink ports on my switch, and I'm not sure what you're talking about because I have ICS in use at home on Windows 98SE (this is at my dad's house) and I am definitely not using the uplink ports. My main problem is not being familiar with XP.

 

[SuperMachoMan]

My bad. For some reason I was thinking that ICS allowed you to connect from computer to computer using straight thru and thus would need to be connected to the uplink port of a switch. Looking it up, I see that is not the case.

If you can connect directly from computer to computer (with the crossover cable), but not through the switch, then there might be something wrong with your switch.

*SHRUG*

 

[cipher00]

This might help.

 

[theXing]

See if you can get another conction, i.e. a hub, or another router and see if it is bad. I don't know what else to say, I have never had this much trouble.

 

[XMan]

Man, after reading the article that Cipher posted, I'm fairly sure it's not a hardware problem.

I'm going to try the NetBEUI solution presented in the article. If that doesn't work, I'm washing my hands of it.

 

[XMan]

The road goes ever on and on . . .

Swapped out the switch for a Linksys.

That did seem to help, as I can now see the two computers in my network places. My dad also picked up a copy of a Windows XP book, and we read through the networking portion. Comparing the screens I get in the book and those on the computers, they are different. I see the Network ID button you guys were talking about earlier, and it is nowhere to be seen on either of my two systems. There is also no settings for the domains.

Now, I can see the two computers, but when I try to browse, I get the following:

\\shop is not accessible. You might not have permission to use this netowrk resource. Contact the administrator of this server to find out if you have access permissions. The network path was not found.

Now, I know there is communication between the two because name changes are reflected with refreshed screens. But I still can't ping between the two computers even though I can see them. Any ideas?

 

[theXing]

You now need to run the network setup wizard and tell it that there is no domain. Just goes to show you that youth doesn't necessarily mean intelligence. J/K

 

[XMan]

Originally posted by: theXing
You now need to run the network setup wizard and tell it that there is no domain. Just goes to show you that youth doesn't necessarily mean intelligence. J/K

There is no option for enabling or disabling domains in the network setup wizard. The pictures in the book are different from what I see on the computer. In the book, I can see the option you are talking about, but I don't have that option on my computer. Is this a difference between XP Pro and XP Home?

 

[theXing]

My appologies, my friend has Pro. There is a difference. I will look into it. Although we had no problems doing 95 w2k XP pro and home

 

[XMan]

Okay. Reinstalled Windows XP on the two machines in the hopes that it might help something . . . which it didn't.

I KNOW the two are communicating in some form. Name changes are displayed on the two computers, and if I make the IP addresses identical, I get a message that there is a network comflict.

 

[theXing]

What is your subnet on the two machines?

 

[XMan]

IP's are 192.168.0.1 and .2.

Subnet is 255.255.255.0.

 

[JungleJoe]

It's not the IP settings. The reason you are getting error messages about permission is because the XP machine that is being connected to does not have a computer account for the machine that is connecting to it. Eg. if you have a machine named "Laptop", and the other machine named "Desktop", in order for "Laptop" connects to "Desktop", you need to create a computer account on "Desktop" for "Laptop". Give it a try...

 

[XMan]

Originally posted by: JungleJoe
It's not the IP settings. The reason you are getting error messages about permission is because the XP machine that is being connected to does not have a computer account for the machine that is connecting to it. Eg. if you have a machine named "Laptop", and the other machine named "Desktop", in order for "Laptop" connects to "Desktop", you need to create a computer account on "Desktop" for "Laptop". Give it a try...

When you say name, do you mean the computer name? Or the login name?

 

[burnedout]

Originally posted by: Xerox Man

Originally posted by: JungleJoe
It's not the IP settings. The reason you are getting error messages about permission is because the XP machine that is being connected to does not have a computer account for the machine that is connecting to it. Eg. if you have a machine named "Laptop", and the other machine named "Desktop", in order for "Laptop" connects to "Desktop", you need to create a computer account on "Desktop" for "Laptop". Give it a try...

When you say name, do you mean the computer name? Or the login name?

Xerox Man: I'll help you out while I'm waiting for it to cool off so I can go out and mow the yard................

What Jungle Joe is saying is this: Say for example "Desktop" is in the house and "Laptop" is in the garage. Obviously, you want access to one from the other. Do this then. Get on "Desktop" and add the user "Laptop" to it. To do this, go into "Computer Management" in the control panel. Create the account "Laptop" by expanding the Local Users and Groups tab and then right clicking on the users folder. Name your new account laptop. Don't put a password just yet! You can make Laptop a Power User, User or Admin. I advise Power User for now.

After you do this, go to Laptop and attempt to access Desktop again. If successful, then do the same on Laptop, except add Desktop as the user.

I do this all the time at one of our locations as we have a bunch of new XP boxes on a peer-to-peer network and they all must share a printer.

If you need more help, PM me and I'll be glad to guide you as best as I can.

 

[burnedout]

Correction on that "Don't put in a password yet!" Use the same password that you have for "Desktop" That way you'll give it access privileges.

I had a temporary brain fart and was thinking of the XP network where my wife works.

 

[XMan]

AUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We . . . wired . . . the . . . cables . . . wrong.

I can't believe I've been beating my head against this thing for almost a week and the f'in cables we're wired wrong.

We got new (pre-made) network cables and it took 30 seconds before everything was properly setup - ICS, File and printer sharing, everything.

AUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for all your help, guys.

 

[XMan]

All right, we got it working, but the 150' line running to the house gives us an error of "network line uplugged" when we try to use the computer in the house.

I know that the theoretical limit for cat 5 is 100 meters, but do I need some sort of signal amplifier or something? I checked the continuity of the wires, and I have good conductivity from the port that plugs into the hub to the port that comes out into the house.

Any ideas?

 

[Relayer]

You now need to run the network setup wizard and tell it that there is no domain. Just goes to show you that youth doesn't necessarily mean intelligence.

FYI: XP Home Edition CANNOT join a domain.