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Computer Browser service keeps stopping 5

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kjfrey55

Technical User
Jul 16, 2005
12
US
I have a small home network (workgroup set up through a home router). I need the service to be able to connect from one machine to the other. I have one machine on which the service keeps stopping by itself. It is set for Automatic - but can stop in the middle of a session or after logging off and back on.
 
Computer Browser requires the following Service to be Started and set to Automatic.

Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS)
Workstation
Server

Try starting the windows firewall, auto updates. security center services also to fix this.

The Computer Browser service does not start and event ID 7024 is logged when you restart your Windows XP Service Pack 2-based computer

What do you have listed as an error in the Event Viewer?

Computer Browser service won't start
thread779-924429
 
This may have done it. I had the Microsoft firewall turned off. After turning it on, the browser service came on.

I also have Norton Internet Security to install. Do they play well together? Should I set one as precedent over the other or is one not necessary with the other working?
 
Two firewalls is not a good idea as they may well interfere with each other. When you turn off the SP2 Firewall do it via the Control Panel and not Services.
 
RESOLVED

What it appears to have been was that I didn't have the Windows Firewall/ICS service running. Once I invoked that, the browser service was started and remained running. Thanks for your help.
 
This is actually a bug in Windows XP SP2. There's no reason stopping the Firewall/ICS service should cause the Computer Browser service to stop. There's a hotfix in the works for this which will eventually be part of SP3, but the problem is not widely advertised, and generally only those who tweak their systems for minimal services are noticing the issue. If you own a legitamate copy of Windows XP (I'm not saying you don't) and you don't mind dealing with a Microsoft techie over the phone, you can call and obtain the hotfix now. Sadly there is no other way, yet.

Here's the MS Knowledge Base article on the issue:


In that page there's a link to the numbers you can call for the fix. Here's that link in case you'd like to go directly to it:

[LN];CNTACTMS

Hope this has shed some light on this rather confusing annoyance.
 
You are not going to see SP3.
A star for you DuxAranea, as that is a truely obscure KB article and completely apt for the original poster's question.

Bill
 
I agree - I'm sending a star as well - thanks Dux!
 
If you liked that, you'll probably love this...

I got my hands on the hotfix, or rather contents of it. It's just one itty-bitty DLL file called "browser.dll", and it goes in your "windows\system32" folder. It's not exactly that simple though, and if you don't know why I'm saying that, you'd better read on...

Firstly, I uploaded the file to a geocities site. It's in a .ZIP. Depending on your browser you may need to right-click and "Save Target As..." or something like that:


Once you unzip 'browser.dll', note the version data:

'5.1.2600.2586'

The last 4 digits are all you need to be concerned with. Next you can take a look at your current 'browser.dll' file in your 'system32' folder... or you can just take my word for it that the version of that one reads:

'5.1.2600.2180'

As I said, the last 4 is all we're concerned with. You may want to write down each of those last 4, unless you can remember them. It would be a good idea to copy both the original and the replacement 'browser.dll' files someplace safe -- just in case.

Of course now we'd like to replace the file; however if we do in in normal Windows mode (not safe mode) 'Windows File Protection', will revert the file back to its original version faster than you can say your favorite expletive. So you'll need to boot into safe mode first; you know, restart and press F8, choose plain safe mode.

Once there, go ahead and do your replacing. While here, you will also want to get rid of (or replace -- either one) the copy of browser.dll that exists in the system32\dllcache folder. Then look elsewhere for the old version of the file. Do a search if you're not sure where to look, cause if Windows knows where there's an original, Windows File Protection will use it to destroy your evil fixed version as soon as you boot-up normally.

When you're done, boot back on up. Check the version info of the browser.dll files in system32 and system32\dllcache, making sure they both end in '2586' and not '2180' (it's okay if the file doesn't exist at all in dllcache).

That should be it. End the the stupid 'Firewall/ICS' service, set it to 'disabled', and restart the 'Computer Browser' service (set that one to automatic, if it's not already). Assuming all your dependencies are okay, the browse list should be up in less than 12 minutes, but usually a lot less than that (12 minutes is officially the interval at which the list is maintained). If you try browsing your workgroup and you get an error, don't rush it. Give it like 5 minutes before you try again, and I promise, in two or three tries it'll be up.

Oh yeah, and uh, I'm not responsible for anything bad that happens to you or your property as a result of following these directions, in fact I advise against following these directions (wink), so don't say I didn't warn you, and don't complain to me if your rabbit dies. And it will happen, trust me.
 
One more thing, make sure your windows CD isn't in your CD-ROM drive, like, ever again.

Just kidding. Make sure it's not in there when you first boot up though, cause File Protection looks there for good original files. After that first boot-up (maybe two boot-ups, just to be safe; I don't know exactly how it works) you should be fine.

cheery-o
 
I couldn't kill any rabbits, when I tried to download from your link I was only offered a zero byte file.

Has anyone else checked that file download?
 
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