Oh font of all wisdom.
Can anyone advise me on networking a Widows XP machine to a new Windows 7 job? It was easy when I did it between two XP machines but this version 7 baffles me.They are both talking to the internet via our home network but I am dammed if I can get them to talk to one another.
Mike
"MuddyMike" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:
It's not quite as straightforward as it should be, but it's not bad...
I just set up the usual shared folders etc on my Win7 laptop and there they were on the XP desktop. After doing the usual work group thingie. No different really from XP.
Is it no longer worth adding LLTD to XP machines? (See the comments on that page and also eg
That's normal. Remove the firewall crap completely, and leave it off.
You may have set up two different workgroups with different names since the default workgroup name is different between Win7 (WORKGROUP) and XP (MSHOME). Set them both to MSHOME or similar. I can't remember how to do this, but it's easily Googled.
rusty
Googling it is indeed easy, it's finding an answerer that makes sense I have a problem with.
Mike
there is a microsoft article at
I have Vista and XP here and had the same problem. After changing the WG name it may take a few minutes for the network to sort itself out while the name servers update. Or you could shut down and reboot.
rusty
Could be a workgroup/windows problem.
Could be a firewall problem. Try turning off all firewalls for a few minutes.
I remember having a little fun networking our newish Windows 7 machine with our XP machines but I cannot remember how I solved it.
IF you are using 64 bit on the W7 machine I would suggest that any Nokia software you use you put on the XP machine.
Strange, that's exactly what my son said :-)
Thanks for all the tips guys, I will have another go over the weekend.
Mike
Windows networking is one bodge on top of another bodge on top of another bodge .....
It's amazing it ever works.
I have mixed Windows 7 and XP systems here.
What problems? I have no problems.
I had to fiddle with the firewall to get DLNA to work, and it still isn't right though...
Andy
You say you have no problems in one sentence, then that it still isn't right in the next???
Mike
We have XP, Vista and 7 at home. The only problems were the shared printers which live on the XP machine.
MBQ
Yes I didn't experience any issues introducing a Win7 machine to my home (XP) network recently, andI'm no networking whizz, as readers of previous posts will atest.
However, I originally changed the default network name from MSHOME or whatever it was (it's now called 'Lobsternet', believe it or not) which might go along with the problem being different default network names for XP and 7, as someone else suggested...
David
Same here. PCs are a mystery to me. So I just fiddle until they work or break. ;-)
I did the same - since 'workgroup' isn't even English and anything with MS in it would get binned instantly.
My Win7 laptop now talks happily to my WinXP more by luck than skill though. I actually gave up trying at the weekend but when I used it today I thought I would take another look at the network and there it all was!
Thanks for all the advice.
Mike
I think that is why it was so difficult to give you a direct answer to your problem. Nobody is ever quite sure how they fixed theirs. It just happens eventually.
in general the ability to pick up a 'visible' network happens at boot time, and then sporadically thereafter.
I have seen the same..machines couldn't 'see' a server, and yet when rebooted they could.
windows is just crap, and its best to reboot it every time, because chances are, that's the only time its ever in a defined state.
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