Win98 PC can't access WinXP Pro PC shares

Here's the setup: I have two PCs, one Win98, the other WinXP Pro. I'm trying to set it up so that the printers attached to each machine will be available to the other via the network (Cat5 10/100Base Ethernet with a little NetGear switch between them and a Cisco DSL router off of the switch.)

I've set up Microsoft Networking client and file and print sharing on both machines, bound to the NetBEUI protocol (so as to prevent it from ever getting out on the Internet.) Then I set up the printer on both machines to be shared. At this point I can use the printer on the 98 system from the XP, but not the other way around.

I created a user on the XP Pro PC for the user on the Win98 system, gave it a password, and rights to the shared printer. The trouble is that everytime I try to view or connect to the XP system from the 98 system, it asks me for a password, and I put in the password, AND THE #$@)(*&$! THING WON'T TAKE THE $#(*ING PASSWORD!!!

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It just spits back an error message "The password is incorrect. Try again." I've tried connecting as the WinXP admin, another WinXP user, recreated the user for the 98 system with different names, nothing works!

I've looked into this elsewhere, but all the stuff online seems to be about people forgetting to make the user on the XP machine, or setting the XP user password blank, and I don't have those problems. I would really like some help here before I hurl the Win98 machine down the stairs and rip my hair out...!

sounds like a local security policy issue on the xp pro machine.

goto start --> control panel --> administrative tools --> local security settings. look for a line in the "security options" tree saying "accounts: limit local account use of blank passwords to console logon only". default setting should be "enabled", so "disable" the option.

other options in same category to look at:
- "devices: prevent users from installing printer drivers"
- "network access: sharing and security model for local accounts"

then in "user rights assignment", look into:
- "access this computer from the network"
- any of the "deny _____" entries

also try explicitly listing the win98 account name (located in the xp pro's list of users) as that it can logon over the network in the security settings, and also listed in the printer's sharing/security tabs.

do remember that win98 had a limit of 12 characters in folder names it could view on other machines. make sure any of the xp pro machine's shared folders don't violate this rule. i don't remember if this applied for shared devices, though...

hope this helps!

I made some changes, based on the suggestions in the previous post:

Shortened the printer share name to 8 characters.

Added 'Authenticated Users' and the Win98 user to the 'Access this computer from the network' policy in User Rights Assignment.

Added the Win98 user to the 'Deny login locally' policy under User Rights Assignment.

Changed 'Accounts: Limit local account use of blank passwords to console logon only' to Disabled, then changed the Win98 user's password to blank.

Removed Win98 user from group Users.

Added the Guest and Admin users to the 'Deny access to this computer from the network' policy in User Rights Assignment.

However, even after doing all this I still get the same "password incorrect" message... I'm thinking that I'll try turning on Simple Sharing next, even though it violates my sense of security, just to see if it works.

Edit: I forgot to mention that the resource the "password incorrect" message box says that I'm try to access on the WinXP machine is '\\<machine name>\IPC$' Don't know if this'll help figure out the problem, but it might.

on the win98 machine, goto start --> run --> type in just "\\" and the ip address (instead of the machine name) of the xp pro machine. skip using the "c$" part or anything else for now. at the logon prompt, type:

username = XP_PRO_COMP_NAME \ local_xp_pro_account (without the spaces around the "\")
password = (normal pass.)

i can't tell from your last post if you were using an administrator account or a less-priveleged account to logon to the "c$". try using the account you made on the xp pro machine for the 98 machine to use, then try using an administrator-level account.

since my last post, i did remember that with 98/me computer sharing you had to have a shared folder on the destination machine, or the 98 machine would never see it in "network neighborhood". i don't know if the default xp user shared folders count toward this requirement or not, and it sounds a little like "needle in a haystack", but it's worth a shot. i also remembered that i had tcp/ip, netbeui, and even ipx/spx enabled on my old 98 machine when networking it with my xp pro machine. that, however, was a few years ago. if i remember anything else, i'll be sure to post.

keep trying, i think you're really close to the solution. of course, when you solve the problem you'll have to post what the clincher was that made it work

I'm using the NetBEUI protocol bound to Microsoft Networking on both machines instead of TCP/IP. I wanted to make absolutely sure no MS Networking stuff could get in from or out onto the Internet, so I used an un-routable protocol. Unfortunately I can't use the IP address like you pointed out above for the "\\".

I tried sharing the All Users "Documents" folder and for a bit it seemed to change it's problem from the "incorrect password" to something like "no permissions set", or "insufficient permissions", but after a reset it went back to the previous problem.

Following your suggestion about trying an Administrator group account, I created a user with a password short enough that I could use it on the Win98 login and made it a member of the Administrator group. However, when I tried to logon from the other machine, it still gave me the same IPC$ login box and "incorrect password" error message.

I've been using my copy of Packetyzer on the WinXP machine to monitor the network traffic moving in and out of the system, and it looks like the proper SMB packets are going in and out... Win98 sends out an SMB Session Setup AndX request, looking to connect with IPC$ on the WinXP system. The proper user name and workgroup is in the SMB request, and I don't know if the password is right because it is encrypted. It goes into the WinXP box, and out spits an SMB Session Setup AndX response, with an "Error: Access Denied" message, and I mentally scream in agony yet again...

I know it must have been something I did when I was on a security kick and changing the Local Security Policies and other stuff around from the defaults. Now it works TOO well: I can't get it to allow what I want in! If only I knew what was going on inside WInXP when it recieves the SMB, what policies and settings it uses... I feel like I need to take a long nap...

it sounds like you've gotten IIS really locked-down ... basically nothing can access the xp pro machine at all :-/

outside of you listing what each local security entry is set to (which i don't think anyone would want to list on a public forum), you may have to spend some time online or at a "borders" store reading up on required/recommended IIS settings. it may trigger a thought about some additional settings you did which is causing the problem.

in case you haven't tried it yet, pick a dummy folder, give the xp pro user account (the one for win98) full permissions to it (just temporarily, of course), and try logging in as the username/password format previously listed above.

i am unclear, however, why you would not want to use tcp/ip and instead choose netbeui as the communication standard on *both* machines. as far as i know, microsoft is trying to do away with netbeui and only provided ways in xp to enable it as "legacy compatibility".

some more "needle in a haystack" guesses: have you looked through the "event logs" yet? (start --> run --> eventvwr ). see if there are any clues being logged there. also, are any of those accounts diasbled? did you create/use any custom security policies? did you add/change any ipsec policy values?

I must not have pointed out before that TCP/IP and NetBEUI are running on both machines, I just have TCP/IP not bound to any services on either one.

I tried setting up a folder with full permissions for the Win98 user; didn't work...

I have looked at the event logs, since I did enable logon/logoff and logon event auditing, but the entries didn't tell me anything I didn't already know, so I turned off auditing.

The only disabled accounts on the XP system are the Guest account and the default Administrator account. I've created an administrator equivilent account that I use on the XP system, and renamed the default Guest and Administrator accounts via Security Options policies.

I've not changed any IPSec policy values, or at least I don't know if I changed anything, but that shouldn't matter since I'm using NetBEUI to transport the MS Networking packets.

I'll have to go out to my local bookstore and read up on how Windows XP handles SMB and MS Networking and what settings are needed. I thank you for your help so far, it's been good.

There was no need to mess with any policies. All you need is the 98 machine to have F&P sharing enabled and Client for microsoft networking installed and being used to login. Once you've done that login to the 98 machine with an account you've setup on the XP machine and have your resources shared accordingly.

Actually, what I did with the Security Policies on the WinXP machine I did long before trying to share resources between the systems. I was on a security kick, and I followed some instructions from various places, but then I did some changes of my own. They didn't seem to cause any trouble, until now...

I do it the other way around to make it easier.
IE: I put my shared printer on the Win98 computer.
not sure if thats an option for you.

Check your firewall settings too.

I use ZoneAlarm so I put the IP address of each computer to the other one's local trusted zone. Then all is well.

I've found Win98 doesn't like connected to WinXP shares, but the opposite is easy (XP connected to 98 share), and WinXP to XP is also easy.

ktwebb said:

There was no need to mess with any policies. All you need is the 98 machine to have F&P sharing enabled and Client for microsoft networking installed and being used to login. Once you've done that login to the 98 machine with an account you've setup on the XP machine and have your resources shared accordingly.

Click to expand...

As stated above, are you using the same username/password on the 98 box that exists on your XP box? Try this as well, just run the home networking wizard in XP and create the disk for 98 at the end. It should configure them both to share files and printers, and you can go back later and mess with netbeui and tcp/ip.

I'll have to disagree to using the wizard. I recommend avoiding MS network wizards like syphyllis. I believe you have to run the inital network interface wizard on a XP Home box to allow sharing. After that, and from the beginning on a Pro box, I would never use a wizard for any MS networking. To each his own of course and opinions will probably vary on that one. I've typically only heard the horror stories about the wizard screwing crap up.

ktwebb said:

I'll have to disagree to using the wizard. I recommend avoiding MS network wizards like syphyllis. I believe you have to run the inital network interface wizard on a XP Home box to allow sharing. After that, and from the beginning on a Pro box, I would never use a wizard for any MS networking. To each his own of course and opinions will probably vary on that one. I've typically only heard the horror stories about the wizard screwing crap up.

Click to expand...

It depends on your definition of screw-up. What it will do is automatically configure the machines to share files and printers. Whether or not it steamrolls over things you have previously setup depends on what you have done in the past. This specific wizard is great for people networking for the first time, or those that just want to save some time. Run it on all your machines and you're done with all your sharing. THEN you can go back and lock it down/customize it.

The trouble with using the Wizard is that it likly is set up to use Simple File Sharing or Simple Sharing, which means anyone who can connect to the XP box has access to any shared resources. That's OK in a 2 or 3 computer network, but throw the Internet into the mix and... Well, if you don't have your LAN locked down you've just given anyone who gets in access to the shares.

I've just rethought how I'm going about getting these two computers to share their printers with one another. Since I'm running TCP/IP and NetBEUI on both machines, with Client for MS Networks and File & Print Sharing for MS Networks bound to just NetBEUI on both, then what am I worring about an intruder from the Internet for? NetBEUI is has no facilities for routing, any NetBEUI traffic would never be able to come in to or get out of my network.

Unfortunately, I can't re-enable Simple File Sharing without also reactivating the Guest account, something that is commonly considered a security risk... I guess I'll just have to try to fence the Guest account in. But I can't do that with simple file sharing... Damn... OK, I'll use Simple File Sharing to just see if it is possible to get the Win98 machine to use the shares on the WinXP Pro box, then change it back.

OldPueblo said:

It depends on your definition of screw-up. What it will do is automatically configure the machines to share files and printers. Whether or not it steamrolls over things you have previously setup depends on what you have done in the past. This specific wizard is great for people networking for the first time, or those that just want to save some time. Run it on all your machines and you're done with all your sharing. THEN you can go back and lock it down/customize it.

Click to expand...

Uh, you can. To each his own as I said. I seldom touch a XP Home machine but yeah, I have to run the initial setup wizard for that but then I'm done and I never touch a wizard on a Pro machine. Your right, wizards are ok for newbs IF the wizards don't fubar windows networking in the process. You can have em. I'll stick with what works.

Enabling Simple File Sharing didn't help any, I still got the same IPC$ 'password incorrect' problem I had before on the Win98 machine. I even made sure that the security policy for allowing certain users to connect to the XP box over the network included the Guest account, and that everything else was in order as far as I know.

I could just give this up, or try delving deeper into how WInXP handles MS Networking connections from older Windows machines. If I had some way of monitoring the paths in the OS that a request from another computer makes, then I could ferret out where it goes wrong, but as it is I don't know what's going on inside the "black box" except in very general terms. Maybe if I knew what services and programs were used, and if some of them have debug modes or verbose modes or something... Ah, I'm too tired to follow this anymore. I'm going to hang it up for the moment.

I know this seems like something everyone overlooks or skips.. but sometimes its the problem
When you setup the network's on both pc's
are you using the same workgroup?
lol, i would check that, than go from there

-(Xyphox)- said:

I know this seems like something everyone overlooks or skips.. but sometimes its the problem
When you setup the network's on both pc's
are you using the same workgroup?
lol, i would check that, than go from there

Click to expand...

doh!! completely forgot about specifying that both machines must have same workgroup name (default workgroup names in win98 and winxp are different). check that first. and also make sure you are not "escaping" out of the win98 network logon screen.

as for the networking wizard, it usually works but remember that the default choices in the wizard wind up bridging different communication standards together (such as 1394 and ethernet). this can cause unexpected results; usually the result is not being able to establish a network connection or view other machines. just check your "network connections" area for additional icons after running the wizard.

btw, doesn't the wizard at some point give the option of copying an executable onto a floppy that can be run on win98 to setup the correct network settings?