Help - lost existing network, access denied - after upgrading to SP2

Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing an
internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured after
I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The upgrade
went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network neighbourhood and
select one of my four computers - I get an dialog; "Computer Name is not
accessible... you may not have permissions... contact network
administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the administrator. What
had changed? I still see all my computers in the neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny occassionally,
I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I can copy to it -
but I can open the computers themselves. Is there something new in SP2 that
I need to set permissions? I haven't set any passwords for anything - its
only my wife and I at home, so we each just log on with our names without
passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the desktop without asking (which is
how we prefer it). I actually re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my
desktop - thinking something got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go.
So far I have very little back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare
clean install - just updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks
2005 - but NO Internet Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

Hi William,

Certain features of file and printer sharing have been modified in SP2 to enhance security. You
might want to go through the following article to see the list of changes and it might help you
figuring out the problem:

Making File and Printer Sharing Safer in Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/u...2firewall.mspx

--

Anando
Microsoft MVP- Windows Shell/User
http://www.microsoft.com/mvp
http://www.mvps.org

In memory of Alex Nichol
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/e...ts/nichol.mspx

Folder customizations
http://newdelhi.sancharnet.in/minku

Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/protect


"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully functional network at home
with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP.
The problems occured after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network neighbourhood and select one of my
four computers - I get an dialog; "Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have
permissions... contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny occassionally, I see a shared
documents folder in my Network Places, and I can copy to it - but I can open the computers
themselves. Is there something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just log on with our names
without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the desktop without asking (which is how we prefer
it). I actually re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something got
mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very little back on my desktop - its
still pretty much a bare clean install - just updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks
2005 - but NO Internet Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

ouch, doesn't sound like much fun:

completely uninstall security softwares temporarily for Troubleshooting
procedures (this includes 3rd party firewall, antivirus, spywares,
antispywares, popupstoppers, etc...)

How to troubleshoot TCP/IP connectivity with Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314067

How to troubleshoot network connectivity problems
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/325487

How to troubleshoot wireless network connections in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313242

How to set up your computer for wireless networking in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;314897

How to troubleshoot home networking in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308007

How to configure file sharing in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304040

hope one of these articles helps.

"William Cheng @work" wrote:

Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing an
internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured after
I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The upgrade
went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network neighbourhood and
select one of my four computers - I get an dialog; "Computer Name is not
accessible... you may not have permissions... contact network
administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the administrator. What
had changed? I still see all my computers in the neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny occassionally,
I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I can copy to it -
but I can open the computers themselves. Is there something new in SP2 that
I need to set permissions? I haven't set any passwords for anything - its
only my wife and I at home, so we each just log on with our names without
passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the desktop without asking (which is
how we prefer it). I actually re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my
desktop - thinking something got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go.
So far I have very little back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare
clean install - just updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks
2005 - but NO Internet Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

Thanks,

But could it be anything else? How does one give permissions? I'm pretty
sure its not a hardware problem - my NC is working - I have stable internet
connections on all computers.


"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing
an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured
after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network
neighbourhood and select one of my four computers - I get an dialog;
"Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have permissions...
contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the
neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally, I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I
can copy to it - but I can open the computers themselves. Is there
something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just
log on with our names without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the
desktop without asking (which is how we prefer it). I actually
re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something
got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very little
back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare clean install - just
updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks 2005 - but NO Internet
Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

Thanks Anando,

But unfortunately, the MS article wasn't of much help. As I mentioned
before, my Windows firewall has the proper file sharing exceptions enabled.
I don't use passwords (and would prefer not to - unless SP2 absolutely
requires them now for networking) so the rest of the article didn't apply to
me and I do have all my updates in order.

Anything else - its not a hardware problem, its some software permissions.
With my laptop at work, I can get onto other people's shared folder and
computer - but they can't get onto mine. I show up in the workgroups, but
when they click on me, they get the same "access denied" dialog I get at
home. So it must be me!

"Anando [MS-MVP]" wrote in message
...
Hi William,

Certain features of file and printer sharing have been modified in SP2 to
enhance security. You might want to go through the following article to
see the list of changes and it might help you figuring out the problem:

Making File and Printer Sharing Safer in Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/u...2firewall.mspx

--

Anando
Microsoft MVP- Windows Shell/User
http://www.microsoft.com/mvp
http://www.mvps.org

In memory of Alex Nichol
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/e...ts/nichol.mspx

Folder customizations
http://newdelhi.sancharnet.in/minku

Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/protect


"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing
an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured
after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network
neighbourhood and select one of my four computers - I get an dialog;
"Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have permissions...
contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the
neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally, I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and
I can copy to it - but I can open the computers themselves. Is there
something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just
log on with our names without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the
desktop without asking (which is how we prefer it). I actually
re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something
got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very little
back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare clean install - just
updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks 2005 - but NO Internet
Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

Hi Anon,

Unfortunately, after much reading, the articles were not of much help. The
articles that relate to hardware diagnosis doesn't relate to me, nor the
wireless networking - its not the hardware, its the software security
portion. All the pings confirm I have a network that talks to each other
(which was perfectly fine before I installed SP2!) As I have mentioned
above in my original posting, I have tried a lot of these solutions
already - with the exception of repairing my IPSTACK and WINSOCK (which I
don't think could be corrupted since I did a clean install of WinXP SP2 on
the desktop). Additionally I do know how to configure file sharing - I've
done it for years until the SP2 upgrade. I just don't get what I'm
missing - arghh! I'm at wits end now - wasted so much time trying just to
get back what I had! The upgrade to SP2 was the worst decision I've made in
a long time - nothing was wrong before! If it ain't broke... don't fix it.
But know I can't really go back unless I re-install everything.

How do I set permissions to allow each other to log onto the computers?


"anon" wrote in message
...
ouch, doesn't sound like much fun:

completely uninstall security softwares temporarily for Troubleshooting
procedures (this includes 3rd party firewall, antivirus, spywares,
antispywares, popupstoppers, etc...)

How to troubleshoot TCP/IP connectivity with Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314067

How to troubleshoot network connectivity problems
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/325487

How to troubleshoot wireless network connections in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313242

How to set up your computer for wireless networking in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;314897

How to troubleshoot home networking in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308007

How to configure file sharing in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304040

hope one of these articles helps.

"William Cheng @work" wrote:

Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing
an
internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured
after
I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The upgrade
went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network neighbourhood and
select one of my four computers - I get an dialog; "Computer Name is not
accessible... you may not have permissions... contact network
administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the administrator.
What
had changed? I still see all my computers in the neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally,
I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I can copy to
it -
but I can open the computers themselves. Is there something new in SP2
that
I need to set permissions? I haven't set any passwords for anything -
its
only my wife and I at home, so we each just log on with our names without
passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the desktop without asking (which
is
how we prefer it). I actually re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on
my
desktop - thinking something got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no
go.
So far I have very little back on my desktop - its still pretty much a
bare
clean install - just updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks
2005 - but NO Internet Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

What are the os's of each workstation?
FAT's can't access user accounts on NTFS (WinXP) boxes. Win9x loggon to XP
boxes as a "guest" and can access the "All User" account only.

I just had a similar issue resolved. With this comment.
"XP Home does not allow sharing of the My Documents or Program Files
folder. Put files to be shared in the Shared Documents folder
instead."

"William Cheng" wrote in message
...
Thanks,

But could it be anything else? How does one give permissions? I'm pretty
sure its not a hardware problem - my NC is working - I have stable
internet
connections on all computers.


"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops
sharing
an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems
occured
after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network
neighbourhood and select one of my four computers - I get an dialog;
"Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have permissions...
contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the
neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally, I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and
I
can copy to it - but I can open the computers themselves. Is there
something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just
log on with our names without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto
the
desktop without asking (which is how we prefer it). I actually
re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something
got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very
little
back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare clean install - just
updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks 2005 - but NO Internet
Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

In article , "mgm"
wrote:
What are the os's of each workstation?
FAT's can't access user accounts on NTFS (WinXP) boxes.

Yes, they can.

A Win9x computer can't access an NTFS partition on its own local disk,
but that doesn't apply to accessing a shared disk over a network.

All versions of Windows can access shared disks and folders on all
versions of Windows. It makes no difference what the disk format is
on any computer. For example, an XP computer with an NTFS can read
the data on its disk and send it, over the network, to a Win9x
computer that has a FAT disk.

Win9x loggon to XP boxes as a "guest" and can access the "All User" account only.
I just had a similar issue resolved. With this comment.
"XP Home does not allow sharing of the My Documents or Program Files

Here's the full story: When XP Home is installed on an NTFS disk
partition, it blocks networked access to the Program Files and Windows
folders and to individual users' folders (but not the "All Users"
folder) within Documents and Settings. I think that's a bad design,
but that's how Microsoft did it.

You can share subfolders within those folders, e.G. you can share
"C:\Program Files\Outlook Express" or "C:\Documents and
Settings\Username\Desktop" and access that folder from another
computer on the network.

In Windows XP Professional, you can disable simple file sharing, which
removes those sharing restrictions.
--
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 Program
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Solution found,

It wasn't the upgrade to SP2 afterall, it was the immediate installation of
Sunbelt's CounterSpy right after the SP2 install.

There are security optimizations which the anti-spyware program performs -
one of which closes a potential hole of "Restrict Anonymous Access". That
registry entry has been subsequently restored - and now I have access to my
other computers.

I hope this helps others.
Thanks.

"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing
an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured
after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network
neighbourhood and select one of my four computers - I get an dialog;
"Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have permissions...
contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the
neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally, I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I
can copy to it - but I can open the computers themselves. Is there
something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just
log on with our names without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the
desktop without asking (which is how we prefer it). I actually
re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something
got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very little
back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare clean install - just
updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks 2005 - but NO Internet
Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm

A Solution!

It wasn't WinXP SP2 after all, it was Sunbelt's CounterSpy. In its efforts
to tighten security, it changed a registry setting so that it no longer
allowed anonymous logon. Unfortunately, the program cannot reverse its
setting and un-installing it does not reverse this setting either.
Fortunately after e-mailing Sunbelt's support, they were able to create a
REG file for me to patch my registry - which solved it!

Thanks to all who helped - and I hope this solution may help those in the
future.

"William Cheng @work" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

I have a problem with my existing network at home - I have had a fully
functional network at home with 2 desktops and 2 wireless laptops sharing
an internet connection via Linksys router on WinXP. The problems occured
after I upgraded one of my laptops and one of my desktops to SP2. The
upgrade went flawlessly. However, when I click on the network
neighbourhood and select one of my four computers - I get an dialog;
"Computer Name is not accessible... you may not have permissions...
contact network administrator... Access denied" I am logged in as the
administrator. What had changed? I still see all my computers in the
neighbourhood.

Simple File Sharing is set on
I have shared certain directories and drives before I upgraded to SP2
I've checked the firewall - and filesharing exception is checked.
I've got internet sharing on all computers
I've pinged each computer and I get a return
I've confirmed that Computer Browser in Services has started and is
automatic
I've tried TCP/IP advanced from standard to NetBios over TCP/IP
I've tried the network wizard disk on all computers
I've renamed my workgroup to HOME and each computer to ONE, TWO, THREE,
FOUR

None of these seem to work to allow me access so far. Funny
occassionally, I see a shared documents folder in my Network Places, and I
can copy to it - but I can open the computers themselves. Is there
something new in SP2 that I need to set permissions? I haven't set any
passwords for anything - its only my wife and I at home, so we each just
log on with our names without passwords and WindowsXP just loads onto the
desktop without asking (which is how we prefer it). I actually
re-installed WinXP (SP2 slipstreamed) on my desktop - thinking something
got mucked up in the upgrade - but still no go. So far I have very little
back on my desktop - its still pretty much a bare clean install - just
updated from MS, MS Office and Norton SystemWorks 2005 - but NO Internet
Security.

Help, any suggestions would be helpful.
Wm