Windows 7: New Win7 Boxes can't see my Network

Hello Helpful People.

I have an XP box that hosts my hard drive farm (via a port replicator). It contains my key network drive S:SALT. All my XP machines were on a workgroup (SPICE) and all the machines can see each other on that SPICE network and could access SALT. All my desktop computers come to a switch. The switch also has a router on it that that accesses the internet via a wireless bridge (as opposed to a hard line). The router is also a WiFi device serving the several laptops.

My main desktop machine (ANISE) in my office is a Windows 7 box migrated up from an XP installation. It was able to see SALT from the beginning and have successfully been able to communicate between this Windows 7 box and my network XP box.

Here is the PROBLEM. . . .



I have purchased new Windows 7 boxes and they can't see the network of computers. They can all access the WiFi and get out to the internet just fine, but they can't see the SALT drive or the XP box.

In the new windows boxes, they started out with the WiFi Router as the link between them and the Internet. Then I changed the network to a HomeGroup. They were still able to get to the internet. What I guess I can't figure out is how to get them to see this legacy XP box.

When you connected them up to the wireless network, did you select the network to be a "Home Network"? If not, and you selected "Public Network" it would block the ports for services that allow the machine to be discoverable and to discover other machines.

Just an idea.

I have previously tried to set up networking as a HOME, instead of the PUBLIC Network. But that hasn't made any difference in being able to see the XP machines.

Hi! mclaws, welcome to W7F

Scroll down a bit, you'll see:
Here:
Networking home computers running different versions of Windows

It will give instructions on how to make sure/change the setting, so that all your machines are set for "Workgroup"