[WriteLog] XP networking-reprise

[Eric Scace K3NA]

At W1KM's site we ran a network with the following machines:

   WinXP Pro
   WinNT 4.0 SP6a
   Win98
   Win98SE

Call us networking masochists!

Actually, the network ran fine the entire weekend of the ARRL Contest (as W1F).  Here are a few things that we did:

1) Every machine had a simple name in Windows networking:
   ALPHA
   BRAVO
   ECHO
   GOLF
The names were entered into Window's computer identification screens in lower case.  Sometimes they showed up in Windows Explorer in
upper case, other times in lower, depending on the operating system.  Note that the names are short and have no spaces.

2) To verify that Windows networking was operating properly, we created a shared folder on the WinXP Pro machine (the "hub" of our
network).  The folder was the Program Files\WriteLog folder.  On the other machines, we used Map Network Drive to create a mapped
network drive to the shared folder.  In one case (Win98), Windows Explorer did NOT display the machines in the rest of the
network -- but we could create the mapped network drive!  Very odd, but it showed that networking was functioning at the operating
system level.  We left the mapped network drives connected throughout the contest.  I do not know if this had any helpful effect on
WriteLog (it feels like superstition) -- but it did gives us a quick way to determine if we experienced a Windows networking problem
(which would impact the mapped network drive) or a WriteLog networking problem.

3) On all machines, we logged in using the SAME user name, which was set up with Administrator privileges.  (I was not happy to use
Administrator privileged accounts, but we did not have time to test a workaround that might allow us to use more customary
restricted user accounts.)

4) Despite the use of identical user names and passwords, the Win98 machine required us to enter the password in order to Link To
The Network under WriteLog... and again to connect the Packet Window under WriteLog.

5) The WinXP Pro machine was the one to which all the other machines linked in WriteLog.  It was also the machine to which the 2m
spotting radio was connected.

   Note that, with respect to Clive's situation, we did not have TWO WinXP Pro computers in our network.  So our situation was not
quite analogous.

-- Eric K3NA
(bruised network admin of W1KM)

-----Original Message-----
From: writelog-bounces at contesting.com
[mailto:writelog-bounces at contesting.com]On Behalf Of Clive Whelan
Sent: 2003 March 1 Saturday 18:59
To: writelog at contesting.com
Subject: [WriteLog] XP networking-reprise


Further to recent exchanges here, and Wayne's updated
instructions.


I followed the somewhat tortuous route for my two XP Pro
machines, and while everything seemed to go OK, the final result
was failure, the dreaded lost network connection being received
within about 10 seconds.



Has anyone followed the procedure with success?


73

Clive
GW3NJW


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