shared files & printer - win XP & win 98 SE not working

[bobmcb]

I have 2 Win XP home edition machines and 2 Win 98 SE machines. Each XP machine can see only one Win 98 machine. Neither Win 98 machine can see either Win XP machine.

Work group is the same for all. Machine names are unique. All machines networked with ethernet and a router with DSL. All machines can access the internet.

Any suggestions are most welcome.

Thanks,

Bob McBirney
bobmcb@sbcglobal.net

 

[ImpetusEra]

Same workgroup is a good start. Have you checked to make sure they are using the same subnet mask an an IP address within the subnet?

 

[smah]

If all machines can access the internet correctly, then the physical hardware is fine.

Make sure something is shared on each machine (empty folder or printer is fine). Also make sure there is no firewall software running. This includes XP's built-in firewall and any firewall that may have been installed with your antivirus software.

 

[bobmcb]

Thanks for the input. My subnet mask is 255.255.255.0. The individual IP addresses are automatically assigned by the router and start at 192.168.1.100 and increment from there as each machine acquires an IP address.

I did find that the built in XP firewall does prevent the file and printer sharing associated with 'My Network Places' and 'Network Neighborhood'. Is my network vulnerable when using the router which uses a different set of IP addresses internally than the IP address that it presents to the internet. If the router provides protection, is it appropriate to run with the XP firewall option (protect my computer) turned off?? The router is a Linksys Wireless G. WEP is enabled for my wireless connection to a laptop.

If the firewall should be turned on, then how can one take advantage of file and printer sharing?