WinXP Pro File Sharing

Troubleshooting

The following errors are common when attempting to connect to a share:

Unable to Browse the Network

On a Windows 95/98/Me machine, the most common cause of this is that the user isn't logged on. Look on the Start menu, under the Log Off option. If it shows Log Off <user name>, then you're logged on. If it shows just Log Off', then you're not logged on.

One reason for this is the user hitting ESC or clicking Cancel at the login dialog. They must not do that. Either enter the password, or leave the password empty and click OK. If the user is never presented with a login dialog and is still not getting logged in, then refer to Microsoft Knowledge Base article Q141858 for a likely fix.

User is prompted for IPC$ Password

This happens when you attempt to browse the XP machine, but the XP machine is not satisfied with the credentials of the user. In other words, it doesn't know who you are. Possible causes:

Your current user name doesn't exist on the XP machine. To fix this, either enable the Guest account, or log in with a user name which has a valid account on the XP machine.

The current user name is valid, but its password doesn't match the password for that account on the XP machine. To fix this, either:

Change the password on one of the machines to match the other, or;

Enter the XP machine's password for that user name at the IPC$ prompt.

Error 31 when attempting to browse the XP machine

This error occurs if you set up a user account without a password, and then attempt to log in across the network. By default, Windows XP doesn't permit remote users to connect from the network without a password. To allow access without a password:

Go to Control Panel | Performance and Maintenance | Administrative Tools | Local Security Policy.

Expand Local Policies | Security options.

Double-click Accounts: Limit local account use of blank passwords to console login only, which is enabled by default. Disable this option