Laptops will connect to internet but workgroup isn't working

[pumalada]

A new Netgear wireless router was installed on my desktop running Win 2000 Pro. After the installation, the workgroup Home disappeared. I recreated a Home workgroup, but the 3 laptops still will not see it. They ado connect to the internet through the router. I then connected an another laptop, running Win XP, directly to the router, removing the Win 2000 desktop altogether. I also connected the printer and created a network with this computer. Same problem. I contacted Netgear as it seemed to me the problem must be in some setting within the router. Did some hard time with their tech support and got nowhere. Logic doesn't always work with computers, but it seems to me that the router is blocking the networking of my 4 computers. Please, please, please help before I commit a crime of passion!

One thing that seems odd, but maybe not since I am no expert... the IP addresses of all my computers are 192.168.1.yada, yada but the router is 71.75.yada yada If these are pulled down dynamically from the ISP, shouldn't they be somewhat similar?

Thanks!

[NoReason]

The external address might be a 71.75.x.x address. The internal private addresses are what you need to be looking at on the computers.
Check and make sure the router is set to give out enough addresses for all your computers.
and all computers need to be on the Exact same workgroup name...including any spaces...

[Mcninjaguy]

you're best bet is to let all your laptops configure their Ip's automatically there by not confusing yourself if you move the laptops t friends houses or anything

lets see if you can't get it working after trying this

Please supply the following info, exact make and models of the equipment please.

Name of your ISP (Internet Service Provider).
Make and exact model of the broadband modem.
Make and exact model and hardware version of the router (if a separate unit).
Model numbers can usually be obtained from the label on the device.
Connection type, wired or wireless.
If wireless, encryption used, (none, WEP, WPA, or WPA2)
Version and patch level of Windows on all affected machines, i.e. XP-Home (or XP-Pro), SP1-SP2, Vista, etc.
The Internet Browser in use, IE, Firefox, Opera, etc.




Please give an exact description of your problem symptoms, including the exact text of any error messages.


* If you're using a wireless connection, have you tried a direct connection with a cable to see if that changes the symptoms?
* For wireless issues, have you disabled all encryption on the router to see if you can connect that way?
* Have you connected directly to the broadband modem to see if this is a router or modem/ISP issue?
* If there are other computers on the same network, are they experiencing the same issue, or do they function normally?





On any affected computer, I'd also like to see this:

Hold the Windows key and press R, then type CMD (COMMAND for W98/WME) to open a command prompt:

Type the following commands:

PING 206.190.60.37

PING yahoo.com

NBTSTAT -n

IPCONFIG /ALL

Right click in the command window and choose Select All, then hit Enter.

Paste the results in a message here.

If you are on a machine with no network connection, use a floppy, USB disk, or a CD-RW disk to transfer a text file with the information to allow pasting it here.

try to make your network name is the same at least

[johnwill]

Gee, I recognize that previous post...

[Mcninjaguy]

yea im sorry if I stealing from you johnwill but I wanna learn and help too too!
I'm not expecting to do the work myself i's obviously in your ballpark but yea I think I'm getting the somewhat gist of things

[pumalada]

Here are the results you asked for, as well as some others. I released the IP addresses on each machine and the router, and shut them down. I rebooted the router, let it boot fully and rebooted the desktop (running Win 2000 Pro). I then rebooted each laptop (one on XP and one on Vista) and pinged the desktop (192.168.1.3) and the router (71.75.22.86) I can ping the router from each computer but can't ping any computer from another. I'm not sure if this matters, but I did notice that the IP Subnet Mask for the router is 255.255.240.0. All of the other computers are 255.255.255.0 in case this helps.

Thanks for any help!


Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6001]
Copyright (c) 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\Users\pumalada>ipconfig

Windows IP Configuration


Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::9c94:b3d6:6d64:7d03%11
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.4
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 7:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 17:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :

C:\Users\pumalada>ping 192.168.1.3

Pinging 192.168.1.3 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 192.168.1.4: Destination host unreachable.
Reply from 192.168.1.4: Destination host unreachable.
Reply from 192.168.1.4: Destination host unreachable.
Reply from 192.168.1.4: Destination host unreachable.

Ping statistics for 192.168.1.3:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),

C:\Users\pumalada>ping 71.75.22.86

Pinging 71.75.22.86 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 71.75.22.86: bytes=32 time=67ms TTL=64
Reply from 71.75.22.86: bytes=32 time=2ms TTL=64
Reply from 71.75.22.86: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64
Reply from 71.75.22.86: bytes=32 time=2ms TTL=64

Ping statistics for 71.75.22.86:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 67ms, Average = 18ms

C:\Users\pumalada>ping 206.190.60.37

Pinging 206.190.60.37 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=87ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=23ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=25ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=24ms TTL=54

Ping statistics for 206.190.60.37:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 23ms, Maximum = 87ms, Average = 39ms

C:\Users\pumalada>ping yahoo.com

Pinging yahoo.com [206.190.60.37] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=22ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=23ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=24ms TTL=54
Reply from 206.190.60.37: bytes=32 time=21ms TTL=54

Ping statistics for 206.190.60.37:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 21ms, Maximum = 24ms, Average = 22ms

C:\Users\pumalada>NBTSTAT -n

Local Area Connection:
Node IpAddress: [0.0.0.0] Scope Id: []

No names in cache

Wireless Network Connection:
Node IpAddress: [192.168.1.4] Scope Id: []

NetBIOS Local Name Table

Name Type Status
---------------------------------------------
PAM-LAPTOP <00> UNIQUE Registered
HOME <00> GROUP Registered
HOME <1E> GROUP Registered
PAM-LAPTOP <20> UNIQUE Registered
HOME <1D> UNIQUE Registered
..__MSBROWSE__.<01> GROUP Registered

C:\Users\pumalada>ipconfig /all

Windows IP Configuration

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : Pam-laptop
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Wireless LAN adapter Wireless Network Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Con
nection
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-1C-BF-A4-BF-04
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::9c94:b3d6:6d64:7d03%11(Preferred)
IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.4(Preferred)
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . : Thursday, September 25, 2008 10:38:05 AM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . : Friday, September 26, 2008 10:38:00 AM
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Realtek RTL8101 Family PCI-E Fast Etherne
t NIC (NDIS 6.0)
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-E0-B8-E7-6C-0F
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : isatap.{B9BF3D75-FDB1-437D-B3C8-6B060DDD8
D8C}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 7:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : 6TO4 Adapter
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 11:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : isatap.{49D1C28C-62A5-4F00-95F0-D01017A9A
B8D}
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-00-00-00-00-00-00-E0
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 17:

Media State . . . . . . . . . . . : Media disconnected
Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Teredo Tunneling Pseudo-Interface
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 02-00-54-55-4E-01
DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes

C:\Users\pumalada>

[johnwill]

How about the same information from the other two computers?

What screen are you seeing a subnet mask of 255.255.240.0 on for the router? That sounds like a problem if it's on the LAN side.

Failure to ping is almost always a firewall issue.

[Mcninjaguy]

If you can make sure that your firewall will allow connections coming from other computers on the same network

If your using Comodo firewall I know that there's a seeting where it won't allow other computers on the network to trust each other

[pumalada]

OK, got a new Belkin router. The desktop, one of the Vista laptops and the XP laptop are all functioning and printing again. The other Vista laptop will connect to the internet through the router, and it will see the other laptop running Vista. It will not actually connect to the Vista laptop, and it will not see the 2000 Pro desktop or the XP laptop.

[johnwill]

First off, for the Vista machines, let's make some adjustments.


Specifies the mode of authentication and session security to be used for network logons.

On your Vista machine: Hold the Windows key and type R, enter regedit

Navigate to the following folder:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa

In the right, double-click "LmCompatibilityLevel"

Change the value to 1 (probably currently 3)



Disable the IP Helper service:

1. Hold the Windows key and type R, enter "services.msc" (without the quotes) and press Enter
2. Scroll down to the IP Helper service, right click on it and select Properties
3. In the dropdown box that says "Automatic" or "Manual", set it to Disabled and then click on "Apply"
4. Then click on "Stop" to stop the service from running in the current session
5. Click OK to exit the dialog



Disable IPv6:

1. Hold the Windows key and type R, enter "ncpa.cpl" (without the quotes) and press Enter
2. Right click on each network connection and select "Properties"
3. Remove the checkmark from the box next to "Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)
4. Click OK to exit the dialog

NOTE: You should do this for each network connection.



Disable the DHCP Broadcast Flag:

Link: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/928233

1. Hold the Windows key and type R, enter regedit and press Enter.
2. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
3. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{GUID}
4. In this registry path, click the (GUID) subkey to be updated.
5. If the key DhcpConnForceBroadcastFlag does not exist, use the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD (32-bit) Value. In the New Value #1 box, type DhcpConnForceBroadcastFlag, and then press ENTER. If the key exists, skip this step.
6. Right-click DhcpConnForceBroadcastFlag, and then click Modify.
7. In the Value data box, type 0, and then click OK.
8. Close Registry Editor.

NOTE: You should do this for each and every GUID subkey.
NOTE2: (GUID) is a mnemonic for the individual subkeys, the actual text "GUID" does not appaer.


Restart the computer.




The only program I'm aware of that currently relies on IPv6 is the new Windows Meeting Space. The first 2 changes will cause that program not to work - but will leave all of your normal (IPv4) connections unaffected. If it causes problems that you can't overcome, simply revert back to the original settings.

[johnwill]

After completing the modifications in the previous post, let's see this for each machine.

Hold the Windows key and press R, then type CMD to open a command prompt:

In the command prompt window that opens, type type the following commands, one at a time, followed by the Enter key:

Note that there is a space before the -n or the /ALL, but there is NOT a space after the - or / in the following commands.

NBTSTAT -n

IPCONFIG /ALL

Right click in the command window and choose Select All, then hit Enter.
Paste the results in a message here.

If you are on a machine with no network connection, use a floppy, USB disk, or a CD-RW disk to transfer a text file with the information to allow pasting it here.



Also, from a command prompt, can you ping each machine by name from any other machine?

[pumalada]

Did all this on the 1 Vista machine that still has trouble viewing and connecting to the other machines on the network. The other Vista machine sees everyone on the network (even the handicapped Vista laptop) and can print to the network printer, so can the XP laptop. I matched all my settings to the other Vista laptop to no avail. The most computer illiterate person in the house sat done at my laptop last night, clicked around for a few minutes and boom, up popped a network logon screen. It allowed me to logon and print, but I still couldn't see anyone but the other Vista laptop (still can't access it though). After a restart, I was still able to print but not see the others. Now, I can't even print and still no others visible except the Vista laptop. We are all assigned to the Home workgroup but only the 2 Vista laptops are assigned to the Network Location 'letters 3'. Would this matter?

Yes, I can ping each machine on the network. Thanks so much for any help. I'm a grad student and the inability to print is crippling...well, not crippling, I can save what I need to print onto my travel drive and then go in the other room, plug it into the desktop and print, but it sure was nice when I was a member of the 21st century and could print from the porch!