Networking 2 computers Using crossover cable

[SebAguilera]

Hi Guys,
I've done a little bit of research already on these forums but still can't seem to connect my 2 computers. Here's the description of my problem.Any insight would be greatly appreciated.


************PROBLEMS

1) When I browse "My Network Places" from either system I can see both systems listed under the same Workgroup which I have called "HOME". But when I try accessing one system from the other I get this error:
"//SYSTEM1 is not accessible. The Network path was not found."
or
"//SYSTEM2 is not accessible. You might not have permission to use this network resource. Contact the administrator of this server to find out if you have access permissions. The Network path was not found."

2) I cannot access the Internet from SYSTEM2

3) Pinging one system from another is not succesful



************DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM

-I have one system running Windows XP[System1] and the other running Windows 2000[System2]
-I want to share files between both. I want to access SYSTEM1 files from SYSTEM2 and vice versa.
-I want to share internet connection between both
-SYSTEM1 is connected via USB to a cable modem
-SYSTEM1 is connected to SYSTEM2 via a crossover cable.
-Both systems have Ethernet cards.

I have setup the proper IP addresses as outlined on this site:

http://www.practicallynetworked.com/sharing/xp_ics/

SYSTEM1 SETTINGS

Local Area Connection 1 [USB]
This is my Internet Connection
Obtain IP address automatically
Obtain DNS Server address automatically
Allow Other network users to connect through this computers Internet connection
Protect My Computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this compute from the Internet[Internet Connection Firewall]
Allow other network users to control or disable the shared Internet Connection


Local Area Connection 2[Ethernet]=> Network Connection
IP 192.168.0.1
subnet mask 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway 192.168.0.2
Preferred DNS Server 192.168.0.2
File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks is installed and checked


SYSTEM2 SETTINGS
IP 192.168.0.2
subnet mask 255.255.255.0
Default Gateway 192.168.0.1
Preferred DNS Server 192.168.0.1
File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks is installed and checked




Thanks a ton!!!

Seb

 

[jpm121]

Seb, first of all congrats on the most complete posting of details to help us solve your problem.

The first thing I noticed was that System 1 references the IP address of system 2 for DNS & default gateway, and system 2 references system 1!! That's Not A Good Thing, as the smarmy blonde dragon lady Martha might say.

System 2 should indeed reference 192.168.0.1 (system 2) for its needs. However, System 1 should be looking out on the internet for its DNS and gateway info. I'm not experienced with USB cable modems, but I'd suggest you'll need to set System 1 to have a static IP address, and manually configure the gateway and DNS.

Next up -- I'd suggest disabling the Internet Connection Firewall for now -- it can cause problems getting things set up properly the first time. You can try turning it on later or upgrade to a good firewall if you wish. And I heartily recommend that you do, especially in like of the Blaster worm that's currently ravaging the internet.

Finally, you'll likely need to create user accounts in XP and 2000. On the XP machine, create a user account for the user of the 2k machine, and on the 2k machine create a user account for the XP user. If it was XP to XP, you might have better luck with simplified file sharing, but I generally have to go the long way around with a setup like yours.

Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management -> Users

Right-click to create new user -- yell if you need help with this.

That's where you can create a new account on each machine. Once that's done, when you try to access the shared folder from Network Places/Neighborhood, you should be prompted for a username and password. Type that in and you should be all set!

 

[SebAguilera]

Thanks JPM!

I have disabled all firewalls that I could find on both systems.Also I have removed the gateway and DNS entries on SYSTEM1 that refer to SYSTEM 2. At this point I can ping successfuly from SYSTEM1 to SYSTEM2 but not the other way around. My next step is to create identical user accounts on both systems. How necessary is that?

Thanks Again for all the useful info!

Seb

 

[jpm121]

Seb, if you were running XP on both, you could probably get away with using the Simple File Sharing that's built in -- it's similar to File and Print sharing from Win98.

Win2K, being a more business oriented OS, is more closely tied to the "account" philisophy, so I think it's a good idea. It really isn't difficult at all.

I'd be curious to see an IPCONFIG /ALL from both machines again, to see what IP addresses are being picked up now. If they can't ping each other, we're spinning wheels setting up sharing.