Network/Homegroup problems with new switch


  1. Posts : 2
    Win7 Ent x64, Win8 Pro x64
       #1

    Network/Homegroup problems with new switch


    I've been running two desktop computers (Win7 ent x64 on both) and a networked printer on a very old 4 port network switch for several months now. The switch is connected to a wireless router, and the switch is for things without wireless capability. The computers on the switch are on a completely different network than the laptops on the wireless router, though. I believe the switch acts as it's own network instead of becoming part of the network of the wireless router. I had both desktops joined in a homegroup because I have some music and other media on one that I wanted to share and stream to the other, which is hooked up to a TV. That worked for a while, which surprised me because the switch is only a 10/100 and I was streaming a some movies that were 4-6GB files. One day, though, the homegroup speed randomly dropped to ~3 KB/s, not even enough to copy over a Word document or anything. The computers still both showed up in the network, but the speed stayed at that level. Since then, it has been impossible to stream anything, so I stopped for a while.
    The other day, I picked up a Rosewill 8 port gigabit switch, hoping I could get my homegroup running again, and with a faster, newer switch, be able to stream everything without issue. I got it all plugged in and hooked up just like the last one, but it isn't working quite right. It appears to be set up to pass through devices to the wireless router, because if I try to go to the IP for the config page, it takes me to the wireless router's page. The printer and one of the desktops also now show up in the network of the wireless router. All of the laptops see them, and I can connect to the homegroup on the wireless network with them. The other desktop (the one with everything I want to stream on it), however, appears to work the same way, but does not show up in the network list of any computer, nor does it show any other computers in its network list. Both computers connect to the internet just fine, and as far as I can tell, everything is set up identically. I've tried removing and adding the network on both desktops, and it always comes back to the same thing. Seems to me that since they are both plugged into the switch, they should at least be visible to each other. The desktop with the media always wants to create its own homegroup, even though there should already be one there on that network.
    I'm not sure if that makes a ton of sense, but I've been working at this for a couple hours and nothing I can think of works. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 881
    Windows 7 Ultimate x64
       #2

    You might have had a managed switch or a smart switch before, this would allow you to set the two network up independent of each other. As far as a know Rosewill doesnt have any managed switches so there is no configuration webGUI. This is why you're reaching your router when you type in the address.

    With homegroup issues have you tried recreating it on the machine that used to be running the homegroup?
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 8,870
    Windows 7 Ult, Windows 8.1 Pro,
       #3

    It sounds like the switch was put in after the modem but before the router which would be incorrect.

    Needs to be Modem>WAN port Router>Lan port Switch
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 2
    Win7 Ent x64, Win8 Pro x64
    Thread Starter
       #4

    I think the problem was that the switch wasn't actually a switch, it was an old wired router. I have a combined modem/wireless router from comcast, and I just run a cable from that to the place I had the wired router across the house. I think it's solved now, though. I formatted and reinstalled windows on the machine I wanted to share from, and so far they are all able to connect to the homegroup and stream audio/video. My guess is that we used to have a normal modem and a wireless router connected to that before getting the combined modem, and both networks had the same name, so the machine might have been confusing config left over from the old router with that from the new one. Thanks for the replies!
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 8,870
    Windows 7 Ult, Windows 8.1 Pro,
       #5

    ThroughFire said:
    I think the problem was that the switch wasn't actually a switch, it was an old wired router. I have a combined modem/wireless router from comcast, and I just run a cable from that to the place I had the wired router across the house. I think it's solved now, though. I formatted and reinstalled windows on the machine I wanted to share from, and so far they are all able to connect to the homegroup and stream audio/video. My guess is that we used to have a normal modem and a wireless router connected to that before getting the combined modem, and both networks had the same name, so the machine might have been confusing config left over from the old router with that from the new one. Thanks for the replies!
    I figured something wasn't right there.

    The problem was that between the dual modem/router and the old router, you had two routers both trying to provide DHCP which will cause problems.

    You will want to turn off DHCP on the second router or problems will follow, you can turn it into a switch by just plugging the first router into the LAN port rather than the WAN port.
      My Computer


 

  Related Discussions
Our Sites
Site Links
About Us
Windows 7 Forums is an independent web site and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation. "Windows 7" and related materials are trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

© Designer Media Ltd
All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:01.
Find Us