"jankin" wrote in message
...
In article ,
says...
...
While testing, do this:
- Give each machine a fixed IP address, e.g.
192.168.2.1, 192.168.2.2, 192.168.2.3
- Turn off all firewalls (this is essential!)
- Start your tests by pinging each PC from every other PC.

Repost if still unable to resolve the issue.

details:

win2K ip: 192.168.2.3, FW is ZA (free). Can ping other 2 machines w/
or w/o any/all firewalls running.
winxp ip: 192.168.2.12, FW is native XP. Can ping other 2 machines.
Can ping other 2 machines w/ or w/o any/all firewalls running.

win98se ip: 192.168.2.4, FW is ZA (free). Attempts to run ping
results in error "ping cannot run in DOS mode" - which is the first
time I've ever seen that....

Now with getting the various gateways and DNS right (all set to
192.168.2.1 which is the router, and all machines assigned to
"workgroup"), I look in network neighborhood (and equivalents) and
find:

the XP machine can see the 98SE machine and itself, but not the win2K
machine, and can access files on the 98 machine;

the win2K machine can see the 98se machine and itself but not the XP
machine, and can acccess files on the 98 machine; attempts to
specifically add by IP the XP machine results in a username/password
demand, which is rejected despite having correct entries;

the 98se machine can see the XP machine and itself, but not the win2K
machine. Attempts to connect with the XP machine results in a demand
for a password for IPC$, despite having equal accounts on all 3
machines (username & password).

Protocols running:

win2K: Client for microsoft networks, file&print sharing, netbeui,
tcpip.

winXP: Client for microsoft networks, file&print sharing, NWLink
IPX/SPX/NetBIOS, TCPIP v6, TCPIP

win98SE: Client for microsoft networks, family logon, file&print
sharing, netbeui, tcpip.

Which comes down to 2 problems: why can't the win2K machine be seen?
Why is the win98se machine barfing with ping?

- elmar

Here are a few suggestions:
- It is not sufficient to have identical accounts/passwords on each
PC. You must actually use these accounts/passwords when logging on.
- "Network neighbourhood" is not a good tool to debug things.
The following commands, when executed from a Command Prompt,
net use x: \\192.168.2.12\SomeShare, or
net use x: \\WinXP-PC\SomeShare
tell you much more about what's going on. Note that the first
command won't work on the Win98 PC.
- ZoneAlarm is notorious for blocking packets even when disabled.
Uninstall it for your tests, then re-install it later on. Cut your
ISP link during your tests to keep out hackers.
- I'm posting this reply in a Win2000 newsgroup. Someone in
a Win98 newsgroup should be able to tell you why ping.exe
does not work on your Win98 PC.