Cannot "see" other computers on home network as network places, and one computer can't "see" the homegroup set up by the other
- Allright, I'll try to lay this out as intelligibly as possible.
I've got a 2 year old desktop and a brand new laptop, both of which are using the retail version of Windows 7 Home Premium with all available updates installed.
The laptop has internal wireless. The desktop connects thru a USB wireless adapter. They connect to my home network, "meepmeep".
When I attempt to set up a homegroup on either computer, the other computer doesn't recognize that there is a homegroup on the network. Additionally, the drives I have set as shared on the desktop are not visible under network places. Both are connected to "meepmeep" as a home network with full connectivity, network discovery is on, sharing is enabled, and drives on the desktop are set as shared. Both run Windows Firewall (but no other firewalls). The router is a Belkin Wireless G router.
I have already run the Win7 troubleshooters with no helpful resolution. I have checked and doublechecked that network discovery is on, sharing is enabled, and that the workgroup is set up correctly. What steps should I try now?
Thanks in advance.
UPDATE:
Apparently, according to my network adapter status, I have no network access under IPv6 connectivity. I have internet access under IPv4 connectivity. I have also tried to enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP on IPv4 with no change either. The problem persists whether or not windows firewall is on. I do not use any other firewall programs.
Answers
Hi,
Here are some suggestions you can try:
1. Temporarily turn off firewall on each machine.
2. Modify relevant settings on Windows 7 machine.
a. Click Start and open Control Panel.
b. Open "Network and Sharing Center" and click "Advanced sharing settings".
c. Expand the current network profile (such as "Home or Work"), and then select the following options:
"Turn on Network Discovery",
"Turn on file and printer sharing",
"Turn on sharing so anyone with network access can read and write files in the Public folders",
"Turn off password protected sharing"
3. Enable IPv6 connectivity
a. Click "Start", input "NCPA.CPL" (without quotation marks) to Start Search bar and press "Enter".
b. Right-click the network connection and click "Properties".
c. Select the "Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)" options and click OK.
4. Access the target computer via UNC name. Write down the computer name for the laptop. Click Start button in Windows 7 and type \\laptop computer name, and then press enter. Can you access the laptop machine now?
Thanks,
Novak
- Marked As Answer byNovak WuMSFT, ModeratorMonday, November 16, 2009 2:17 AM
All Replies
Hi,
Here are some suggestions you can try:
1. Temporarily turn off firewall on each machine.
2. Modify relevant settings on Windows 7 machine.
a. Click Start and open Control Panel.
b. Open "Network and Sharing Center" and click "Advanced sharing settings".
c. Expand the current network profile (such as "Home or Work"), and then select the following options:
"Turn on Network Discovery",
"Turn on file and printer sharing",
"Turn on sharing so anyone with network access can read and write files in the Public folders",
"Turn off password protected sharing"
3. Enable IPv6 connectivity
a. Click "Start", input "NCPA.CPL" (without quotation marks) to Start Search bar and press "Enter".
b. Right-click the network connection and click "Properties".
c. Select the "Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)" options and click OK.
4. Access the target computer via UNC name. Write down the computer name for the laptop. Click Start button in Windows 7 and type \\laptop computer name, and then press enter. Can you access the laptop machine now?
Thanks,
Novak
- Marked As Answer byNovak WuMSFT, ModeratorMonday, November 16, 2009 2:17 AM
- I have the same problem. I turned off the firewall (Norton Internet Security's "Smart Firewall"), but I did not make any other changes. Now other computers can see the home group, I can connect and print through the homegroup.
Now what? I'm able to connect, but I can't just leave the firewall turned off. Your steps helped identify the problem, but what is the correct fix? Are there certain settings of the firewall that need to be changed? I don't consider this as fixed.
I thought that homegroup was supposed to take care of making all of this work automatically?
Thanks,
Phillip Garding
Senior Program Manager, Microsoft SQL Server Replication
