Windows ME & networking problems

As a volunteer I run a peer to peer network where I've had no trouble in the
past with Win95, Win98, WinXp, Mac OSX, but Windows Me has be stumped.

First and foremost, my most used Windows networking command is the NET family,
particularly Net View & Net Use. On both 9x & Xp I can run it with ease from
a DOS window, on Me I'm told it cannot be done!

If I modify the shortcut for the DOS window to hide Windows, then on Me the
Net command tells me the Workstation service is not running, do I want to
start it. I respond yes, it says its started, and when I try the Net command
again the same prompt! If I say yes again, then I get an error message saying
duplicate workgroup or computer name on the network.

All computers are in same network. All are using TCP/IP as well and get their
IP addresses from a Router, including the Me computer. The Me machine
gets an IP in the proper range and can easily use the internet connection that
feeds into the Router & the network. I've set it up as close as I can to
the 98 machines and my Xp laptop, but the Me machine is invisible to all other
computers and it cannot see any of them as well.

After searching through help I found that workstation and service are not in
help on the machine at all. In addition I found a part of help that said
that for Me to work in a network it must be THE server. That can't be,
particularly since there is no true server in a peer to peer network and in
this case because the Me machine is a laptop that is only there on occasion.

Can anybody point me to a website specializing in networking Me to the rest of
the world? My searched usually end up with suggestions about using the Net
command which also doesn't work. I've ordered a copy of Windows Me
Annoyances, and maybe that will help.

www.careyholzman.com/net1.htm

Carey

<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> As a volunteer I run a peer to peer network where I've had no trouble in
> the
> past with Win95, Win98, WinXp, Mac OSX, but Windows Me has be stumped.
>
> First and foremost, my most used Windows networking command is the NET
> family,
> particularly Net View & Net Use. On both 9x & Xp I can run it with ease
> from
> a DOS window, on Me I'm told it cannot be done!
>
> If I modify the shortcut for the DOS window to hide Windows, then on Me
> the
> Net command tells me the Workstation service is not running, do I want to
> start it. I respond yes, it says its started, and when I try the Net
> command
> again the same prompt! If I say yes again, then I get an error message
> saying
> duplicate workgroup or computer name on the network.
>
> All computers are in same network. All are using TCP/IP as well and get
> their
> IP addresses from a Router, including the Me computer. The Me machine
> gets an IP in the proper range and can easily use the internet connection
> that
> feeds into the Router & the network. I've set it up as close as I can
> to
> the 98 machines and my Xp laptop, but the Me machine is invisible to all
> other
> computers and it cannot see any of them as well.
>
> After searching through help I found that workstation and service are not
> in
> help on the machine at all. In addition I found a part of help that said
> that for Me to work in a network it must be THE server. That can't be,
> particularly since there is no true server in a peer to peer network and
> in
> this case because the Me machine is a laptop that is only there on
> occasion.
>
> Can anybody point me to a website specializing in networking Me to the
> rest of
> the world? My searched usually end up with suggestions about using the
> Net
> command which also doesn't work. I've ordered a copy of Windows Me
> Annoyances, and maybe that will help.

In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, (E-Mail Removed)
wrote:
>As a volunteer I run a peer to peer network where I've had no trouble in the
>past with Win95, Win98, WinXp, Mac OSX, but Windows Me has be stumped.
>
>First and foremost, my most used Windows networking command is the NET family,
>particularly Net View & Net Use. On both 9x & Xp I can run it with ease from
>a DOS window, on Me I'm told it cannot be done!

Nothing personal, but something's wrong with your Me machine. The NET
family of commands works fine from a DOS window on my Me machines.

Does it work if you do it this way? If not, what exactly happens?

1. Click Start.
2. Type "command" in the window and click OK.
3. Type NET commands in the MS-DOS prompt window that opens up.

Is there anything related to networking in autoexec.bat or config.sys?
There isn't on my Me machines.

>If I modify the shortcut for the DOS window to hide Windows, then on Me the
>Net command tells me the Workstation service is not running, do I want to
>start it. I respond yes, it says its started, and when I try the Net command
>again the same prompt! If I say yes again, then I get an error message saying
>duplicate workgroup or computer name on the network.

I'm sorry, but I don't understand what shortcut you're modifying or
why you're hiding Windows.

What happens if you type this command?

net start workstation

>All computers are in same network. All are using TCP/IP as well and get their
>IP addresses from a Router, including the Me computer. The Me machine
>gets an IP in the proper range and can easily use the internet connection that
>feeds into the Router & the network. I've set it up as close as I can to
>the 98 machines and my Xp laptop, but the Me machine is invisible to all other
>computers and it cannot see any of them as well.

Make sure that:

1. A firewall isn't blocking access.
2. TCP/IP is the only installed network protocol.
3. NetBIOS is bound to TCP/IP.
4. "Client for Microsoft Networks" and "File and printer sharing for
Microsoft Networks" are bound to TCP/IP.

Can the Me machine ping itself and the other computers by IP address
and by computer name? Can the other machines ping the Me machine by
IP address and by name?

>After searching through help I found that workstation and service are not in
>help on the machine at all. In addition I found a part of help that said
>that for Me to work in a network it must be THE server. That can't be,
>particularly since there is no true server in a peer to peer network and in
>this case because the Me machine is a laptop that is only there on occasion.

You're right: that's nonsense. What exactly says that Me must be THE
server?

>Can anybody point me to a website specializing in networking Me to the rest of
>the world? My searched usually end up with suggestions about using the Net
>command which also doesn't work. I've ordered a copy of Windows Me
>Annoyances, and maybe that will help.
--
Best Wishes,
Steve Winograd, MS-MVP (Windows Networking)

Please post any reply as a follow-up message in the news group
for everyone to see. I'm sorry, but I don't answer questions
addressed directly to me in E-mail or news groups.

Microsoft Most Valuable Professional - Windows Networking
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Steve Winograd's Networking FAQ
http://www.bcmaven.com/networking/faq.htm

See thread for original message, for this reply to a reply is edited to cut
down size of my original

On Mon, 07 Mar 2005 04:19:26 -0700, "Steve Winograd [MVP]"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

|In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, (E-Mail Removed)
|wrote:


|Nothing personal, but something's wrong with your Me machine. The NET
|family of commands works fine from a DOS window on my Me machines.

You may be right, to confirm I may install Me from scratch on one of the back
up computers just to learn its quirks.

|
|Does it work if you do it this way? If not, what exactly happens?
|
|1. Click Start.
|2. Type "command" in the window and click OK.
|3. Type NET commands in the MS-DOS prompt window that opens up.

Shouldn't that be the same as a shortcut to open a DOS window? In any case
the effect is exactly the same as before, the error messages vary with the NET
command.

Net Use, Net View, Net Time all give the same error
"Error 3545: You cannot start or stop the Network from within an MS-DOS
window"

|
|Is there anything related to networking in autoexec.bat or config.sys?
|There isn't on my Me machines.

The config.sys is empty. autoexec.bat has nothing related to networking. As
an experiment I tried adding two commands to autoexec.bat
"net start workstation
pause"
but on reboot the autoexec.bat was replaced by the prior version! It gives
the impression Me wants to "protect" the user from himself.

|What happens if you type this command?
|
| net start workstation

"Error 50: You attempted an opertion that cannot be pefored from your
computer or is not supported on the specified server. Make sure you are using
the correct server for the command or task that you want to perform. If the
problem persists, contact your network administrator"

|Can the Me machine ping itself and the other computers by IP address
|and by computer name? Can the other machines ping the Me machine by
|IP address and by name?

Not by name, but now by address. That's in both directions, it can ping and
be pinged by IP address, but computer names can't be pinged in either
direction the way the other computers can ping each other.

|You're right: that's nonsense. What exactly says that Me must be THE
|server?

In Me help when I was searching for start network it had an entry for Home
Networking requirements. Among the miminum requirements was this gem:

"At least one computer must be running Microsoft Me. The computer running
windows Me acts as the server for the network -- the computer that coordinates
the network."

I think your opening statement about something being wrong with this computer
may be correct. Since I have all the drivers for this laptop, my last resort
will be to put Windows 98SE on it.

You were correct in your opening statement about something wrong with my Me
machine. I installed Me on a clean partition on one of the spare computers to
test, and there is zero problem networking or using the NET command.

Final decision will depend on computer owner, but looks like if I can't guess
at a way to find out an easy fix it will be simpler to start clean.

Next thing I'll try is to remove the devices, protocals, etc., and then
reinstall them to see if that fixes things. If not it is a clean start.

Thanks to both responders to original message.

On Mon, 07 Mar 2005 04:19:26 -0700, "Steve Winograd [MVP]"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

|In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, (E-Mail Removed)
|wrote:
|>As a volunteer I run a peer to peer network where I've had no trouble in the
|>past with Win95, Win98, WinXp, Mac OSX, but Windows Me has be stumped.
|>
|>First and foremost, my most used Windows networking command is the NET family,
|>particularly Net View & Net Use. On both 9x & Xp I can run it with ease from
|>a DOS window, on Me I'm told it cannot be done!
|
|Nothing personal, but something's wrong with your Me machine. The NET
|family of commands works fine from a DOS window on my Me machines.
|
|Does it work if you do it this way? If not, what exactly happens?
|
|1. Click Start.
|2. Type "command" in the window and click OK.
|3. Type NET commands in the MS-DOS prompt window that opens up.
|
|Is there anything related to networking in autoexec.bat or config.sys?
|There isn't on my Me machines.
|
|>If I modify the shortcut for the DOS window to hide Windows, then on Me the
|>Net command tells me the Workstation service is not running, do I want to
|>start it. I respond yes, it says its started, and when I try the Net command
|>again the same prompt! If I say yes again, then I get an error message saying
|>duplicate workgroup or computer name on the network.
|
|I'm sorry, but I don't understand what shortcut you're modifying or
|why you're hiding Windows.
|
|What happens if you type this command?
|
| net start workstation
|
|>All computers are in same network. All are using TCP/IP as well and get their
|>IP addresses from a Router, including the Me computer. The Me machine
|>gets an IP in the proper range and can easily use the internet connection that
|>feeds into the Router & the network. I've set it up as close as I can to
|>the 98 machines and my Xp laptop, but the Me machine is invisible to all other
|>computers and it cannot see any of them as well.
|
|Make sure that:
|
|1. A firewall isn't blocking access.
|2. TCP/IP is the only installed network protocol.
|3. NetBIOS is bound to TCP/IP.
|4. "Client for Microsoft Networks" and "File and printer sharing for
|Microsoft Networks" are bound to TCP/IP.
|
|Can the Me machine ping itself and the other computers by IP address
|and by computer name? Can the other machines ping the Me machine by
|IP address and by name?
|
|>After searching through help I found that workstation and service are not in
|>help on the machine at all. In addition I found a part of help that said
|>that for Me to work in a network it must be THE server. That can't be,
|>particularly since there is no true server in a peer to peer network and in
|>this case because the Me machine is a laptop that is only there on occasion.
|
|You're right: that's nonsense. What exactly says that Me must be THE
|server?
|
|>Can anybody point me to a website specializing in networking Me to the rest of
|>the world? My searched usually end up with suggestions about using the Net
|>command which also doesn't work. I've ordered a copy of Windows Me
|>Annoyances, and maybe that will help.

On Mon, 07 Mar 2005 16:04:53 -0800, (E-Mail Removed) wrote:

|You were correct in your opening statement about something wrong with my Me
|machine. I installed Me on a clean partition on one of the spare computers to
|test, and there is zero problem networking or using the NET command.
|
|Final decision will depend on computer owner, but looks like if I can't guess
|at a way to find out an easy fix it will be simpler to start clean.
|
|Next thing I'll try is to remove the devices, protocals, etc., and then
|reinstall them to see if that fixes things. If not it is a clean start.
|
|Thanks to both responders to original message.


Removing the devices, protocals, etc., and then reinstalling worked just
fine. Now my opinion of Windows Me is not as bad as it was yesterday.