How to enable File and Printer Sharing.

[chiefsmt123]

We will be deploying SMS clients shortly. There are a number of workstations in our organization that will NOT have File and Printer Sharing enabled for their network connections. I have been unable to locate a way to enable this on all network connections either via GPO or registry hack. Any help would be appreciated. I would like to avoid any third party applications. Thanks!

 

[crobin1]

What versions of Windows are on your client PCs? GPOs updated with Windows XP SP2 settings can be configured to enable File and Printer sharing. Other clients would have to be done manually or with a registry setting.

 

[tbrennans]

Also if you have firewalls turned on this script will do it on xp sp2:

Set objFirewall = CreateObject("HNetCfg.FwMgr")
Set objPolicy = objFirewall.LocalPolicy.CurrentProfile

Set colServices = objPolicy.Services
Set objService = colServices.Item(0)
objService.Enabled = TRUE

 

[chiefsmt123]

Thank you for the replies. We have a mixed environment. Windows XP SP1 and SP2 along with Windows 2000 SP4.

Concerning the reply from "crobin1", I didn't see anywhere in the GPO editor to enable File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks. This may be because I was using Windows Server 2003 when trying to create the GPO. I will try it with a workstation running Windows XPsp2.

I will give the script a try, also. Thanks to tbrennans.

Just to clarify, I know how to enable this in the Firewall Exceptions. I need to know how to enable File and Printer Sharing on Windows XP(sp1/sp2) and Windows 2000.

 

[tbrennans]

Take a look here:

http://myitforum.com/articles/15/view.asp?id=5015

http://myitforum.com/articles/16/view.asp?id=8529

 

[chiefsmt123]

Thanks for the links. I have seen those. It sounds like a third party app is involved and we are trying to avoid third party apps; however, it may become necessary. Also, I get the impression that this "installs" the F&P service. We just need to enable it. I could be wrong with that assumption. I will give it a whirl.

It sounds like there isn't a quick and easy GPO or script to accomplish this. Weird?!?

Thanks again.

 

[tbrennans]

yes f&p sharing is a royal PIA when its not setup in the 1st place. I'm going through that with an international client now. (just on vpn clients which require it to be setup on the vpn concentrator/pcf file) MS seems to be fixing this moving forward but old OS's are not simple.

 

[chiefsmt123]

Thanks for that piece of info. Going forward, I will need to enable F/P on all new builds. I personally have disabled it in the past.

Oh well.

 

[Makau]

GPO did it for us. I wrote this one to test if F&P needed to be on for discovery issues.

Computer config
Admin Templates
Network
Network connections
Windows Firewall
Domain Profile

Allow file and print sharing exception. This will gray it out even to local admins so any admin users can't stop the client service. Systems all popped up on discovery.
Windows 2000... well, there is a script you can run at login that will alter the settings as well

Regards,