Access to shared files, printer etc via wireless

[BC69]

Hi,
I guess this issue has been posted before but I am experiencing some trouble trying to connect from wireless.

Here are the details:

Windows 7 professional on Dell laptop
Windows XP professional on Dell desktop (has shared folders & printer)
Netgear Router WGR614


Laptop can see and access all shared files and printers whilst connected directly to router (via ethernet) but cannot see them when connected via wireless.
Windows 7 troubleshooting is not too helpful.

Any suggestions?
Cheers,
BC

 

[chev65]

Are you using simple file sharing on the XP machine?
It may work better if you enable user and group permissions which Windows XP professional does support.
This turorial will show you how to set up user and group permissions in XP pro.
How to Share File with Group and User Permissions in Windows XP

 

[BC69]

Hasn't made any difference. Thanks anyway.

 

[chev65]

There is an update for your Router that includes updates for Windows 7.
You can get there from here, scroll down the page to find your model. Answer

 

[BC69]

Yes, already have the upgrade. Still no luck.

 

[BC69]

Okay. I FIXED IT!!!!!!
My situation was more complex than I had first indicated.
1) My Telstra broadband cable modem and Netgear WGR614v9 router are positioned quite far from my Dell desktop. (Rented house - can't easily have modem right next to computer) I therefore have a CAT5 cable running underneath the dwelling and up through a hole in the floor to a 2nd router - DLINK DI -524 (which is not supposed to work with VISTA or Windows 7. I also tried replacing this router with a Netgear WGR614v7)
2) The SSID on the DLINK or subsitute Newtgear was set not to broadcast.
3) Workgroup name on Dell Desktop running XP Pro was still set at MSHOME
4) Workgroup name on Dell Laptop running Windows 7 Pro was "Workgroup"
5) Security on all routers - WPA2-PSK [AES]

I am not entirely sure which tweak actually fixed my issue or whether it was a combination of all. But from my extensive searching there seems to be many users out there who are experiencing network related issues between Windows 7 & XP so I offer the following advice to other frustrated users.

Make sure XP machine is using same Workgroup name as Windows 7 machine.
Turn SSID broadcast on.
Change router security setting to WPA-PSK (TKIP)

Suddenly I could once again access printers and shared folders on my XP machine from my Windows 7 Laptop via a wireless network.
WOW! What a relief. I have not been able to do this since I ran XP pro on both machines many years ago! Back then I could even talk to my Mac mini from both. ( I should have never ventured to the Dark side and joined the PC world. Have been a happy Mac users for 20 years)
Thanks VISTA for a few years of unnecessary pluging and unpluging of USB sticks cables etc. Well Done Windoze!

Happy networking people.

 

[chev65]

Okay. I FIXED IT!!!!!!
My situation was more complex than I had first indicated.
1) My Telstra broadband cable modem and Netgear WGR614v9 router are positioned quite far from my Dell desktop. (Rented house - can't easily have modem right next to computer) I therefore have a CAT5 cable running underneath the dwelling and up through a hole in the floor to a 2nd router - DLINK DI -524 (which is not supposed to work with VISTA or Windows 7. I also tried replacing this router with a Netgear WGR614v7)
2) The SSID on the DLINK or subsitute Newtgear was set not to broadcast.
3) Workgroup name on Dell Desktop running XP Pro was still set at MSHOME
4) Workgroup name on Dell Laptop running Windows 7 Pro was "Workgroup"
5) Security on all routers - WPA2-PSK [AES]

I am not entirely sure which tweak actually fixed my issue or whether it was a combination of all. But from my extensive searching there seems to be many users out there who are experiencing network related issues between Windows 7 & XP so I offer the following advice to other frustrated users.

Make sure XP machine is using same Workgroup name as Windows 7 machine.
Turn SSID broadcast on.
Change router security setting to WPA-PSK (TKIP)

Suddenly I could once again access printers and shared folders on my XP machine from my Windows 7 Laptop via a wireless network.
WOW! What a relief. I have not been able to do this since I ran XP pro on both machines many years ago! Back then I could even talk to my Mac mini from both. ( I should have never ventured to the Dark side and joined the PC world. Have been a happy Mac users for 20 years)
Thanks VISTA for a few years of unnecessary pluging and unpluging of USB sticks cables etc. Well Done Windoze!

Happy networking people.

I'am glad you got it working. Do you realize how many times I have said this,...
Make sure XP machine is using same Workgroup name as Windows 7 machine.

Hundreds of times I have said that to no avail, people just don't seem to get it. It's the most basic part of setting up a network and probably the part most often overlooked.

The problem is that XP names the workgroup MSHOME by default where the Windows 7 machine calls workgroup "WORKGROUP" so unless one of them is named the same as the other it will cause networking problems everytime.

Also using two routers in a network is not a good idea and often does not work correctly. The "other" router needs to be a switch instead. WAN-MODEM-ROUTER-LAN-SWITCH, you aren't supposed to use a second router on the LAN but it can be made to work sometimes.

And obviously SSID needs to be broadcasting.

Who cares which one made it all work, the good thing is that you got it up and running.

Can you mark this post as "solved" so that others might benifit from the information in this post?