Windows 7: XP has no access to shared Windows 7 subfolders

Hi there. Connected an XP machine to my homegroup. It has access to several folders that are shared on a Windows 7 machine (I'll call them A, here). However, it refuses stubbornly to open others, which are shared on the same terms as the ones that can be opened (I'll call them B). So to try to trick, I moved a B folder and made it a subfolder of an A folder. Still nothing. My Windows 7 laptop opens the B subfolder with no problem, but still not the XP PC. Frustrating. Why can XP open some and not others? Thanks in advance for your tips.

This is because Homegroups isn't made to work with other Op systems besides Windows 7.

To get your XP machine to work better with Homegroups try changing the Advanced network setting in the picture below to the one with the arrow pointing at it.

You can click on the "help me decide" link to see what this setting does. You might have better luck setting up a Workgroup for your mixed Op system network.

Thanks, Chev65, for letting me know about the homegroup and Windows7. But that didn't help. What I ended up doing is actually creating another subfolder in the shared folder that can be accessed. Then I moved the files into that subfolder. That worked. But moving a subfolder from elsewhere didn't.
Anyway, what I did notice when I right click on a folder (whether XP can access it or not) and choose 'share with', that there is a 'lock' symbol even though, in the actual properties, it has permissions set up to share with everyone. Strange...

With a mixed Op system it's best to Leave the Homegroup from the Windows 7 machine then create a Workgroup on the Windows 7 machine then join that workgroup from the XP machine. You might also be trying to share folders that aren't meant to be shared. It's best to stick with the standard "Network" folders when sharing in a mixed Op system network.

If you are running any type of A/V or third party firewall then all bets are off as far as file sharing goes. You can try to configure your A/V to work or uninstall your A/V and see if sharing works.

Try this link for setting that up a Workgroup which should be much more reliable.
How to make Windows 7 work with older Windows versions for networking and file sharing.

Thanks again, Chev65. This really cleared things up. Now I've got a better system going, with no problems.

Sounds good gallicbear, it is a bit confusing at first but once you understand the system it works pretty well.