Windows 7: Homegroup and Windows Firewall

I recently updated my last computer in the house that was still running XP to Windows 7. I had all three of them networked together to share printers, files, etc. Now that they are all 7 I'd like to go the homegroup route to network all of the computers. I have created the homegroup and joined all of the computers to it but I am running into an issue with the firewall. None of the other computers that are set to share show up in my computers homegroup tab. It simply reads "No other computers are currently available".

I have narrowed it down to the private profile in the windows firewall and the "inbound" configuration button which by default is set to "Block". When I set it to allow then the other computers show up on my computers homegroup. If I set this to allow does this open me up to outside vulnerabilities? The reason I ask is because since it is under the "private" profile I am under the impression that this firewall section is only for the internal private network. Is this true or false?



Thanks for all of your help.

I also would like to add that I have added the Homegroup predefined rule to both inbound and outbound rules.

I added a rule under the private profile to allow ANY protocol and ANY port on ANY IP and I still could not get the homegroup to show up. Only when I change the inbound on the private profile from "block" to "allow" does the homegroup show up. That is just plain weird.

You shouldn't need to make any adjustments to the Windows firewall for Homegroups to work. Most likely the problem is that one of the required Homegroup services was disabled or a third party anti virus may be causing problems.

At this point it may be best to just leave the Homegroup from all machines then create a new one and rejoin.

Most other Homegroup problems can be solved by following the steps in the link below.

Ultimate Troubleshooting Guide for Windows 7 HomeGroup Connection Issues

I tried to rejoin and even made other computers the lead group and even made my computer the lead and still nothing. Out of desperation I ran the "Homegroup troubleshooter" and it actually confirmed what I discovered. That the Windows Firewall is blocking the connection. Another thing I found odd is that when I tried to go to Control Panel\Network and Internet\Network and Sharing Center\Advanced sharing settings and change the settings and hit "save" the settings would remain the same. I was trying to turn on "Network Discovery" which is currently set to off. Only by turning off the firewall is the connection made.