Setting up network for PC and iBook

Cassy · Mar 21st, 2005, 02:36 PM

Hey there, folks! ^_^ *waves* I'm Cassy and I just joined today. I have a networking problem I hope you guys can help me sort out.

My mom bought a new 12" iBook almost a week ago for my birthday (yaaaaaay) as a late birthday present. Thanks to my uber Google skills and this forum

, I've been able to figure out how to get my iBook to connect to the internet wirelessly with my WRT54G router (the PC is connected to the router with an ethernet cable), use WPA encryption, activate wireless MAC filtering, and use Remote Desktop Connection for Mac. When I got RDC to work, I realized that you can't use it to share files. Now I'm trying to set up file sharing for the PC and the iBook.

My PC is running Windows XP Professional, and my new iBook is running OS X 10.3.7. I used the search feature to direct me to this thread and used the instructions located on this page . But here's where the problem seems to begin: I followed the instructions and opened the "Connect to Server" window, then when I enter the IP address and hit connect, I get an error saying "The Finder cannot complete the operation because some data in "smb://xxx.xxx.x.xxx" could not be read or written. (Error code -36)"

I also tried out the PC to Mac instructions but when I tried to type in the address for the network place (\\xxx.xxx.x.xxx\macusername) I get an error saying "The network you entered does not appear to be valid. Please choose another."

Gah. I was so proud of myself for being able to fish around and figure things out eventually, but this has me totally stumped. I've never set up a network before and I'm learning things as I go along. I hope someone out there can help me out. ^_^

Cassy · Mar 21st, 2005, 05:10 PM

Update: I realized that I had the firewall up on my PC. I took it down and tried again but no dice. I even tried taking down the router's firewall and that didn't work either. When I told a friend about the problem I was having, they suggested pasting "smbmount //computername/c /mount" in the "Connect to Server" window. That didn't work either. When I use the "smbmount //computername/c /mount" command, I get the error "Connection Failed. No response from the server. Please try again."

MACSPECTRUM · Mar 21st, 2005, 05:43 PM

download DAVE from www.thursby.com
easiest way to make pc and mac talk and share
download is free for while

mclenaghan · Mar 21st, 2005, 06:33 PM

You might also want to make sure that you activated the Windows Sharing in the the System Preferences, and then opened up the sharing in the XP machine. I am not sure how to do it on the XP but I am sure it can be done. My wife connects her iMac to her XP machine and shares files all the time.

Once you have tried that then you could try the connect to server and see what comes up. I know it is easier going Mac to PC then the other way until things are working.

Bajan · Mar 21st, 2005, 06:50 PM

What I usually to is connect to the PC using smb://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx/c$ in the Finder (Where xxx is the IP Address).

The C$ tells the Mac to open the administrative hidden share on Windows (C drive in this case, you can also use D$, E$ etc). You will require your Windows workgroup name and the username and password of an administrator account on the XP box.

Good luck!

Cassy · Mar 22nd, 2005, 07:12 PM

Thanks a bunch for everyone's help!! I really appreciate it. ^_^ I found out what the problem was! *little happy dance* I opened up the "Network Connections" window in XP, checked out the properties for my LAN connection and found that two checkmarks hadn't been checked to allow the network to work. Now I can connect to the PC.

But it's a different story when I try to connect to the Mac from the PC. I get the same error as before: "The network you entered does not appear to be valid. Please choose another." I'm sure that Windows sharing is enabled on both computers.

MACSPECTRUM · Mar 23rd, 2005, 01:48 PM

	Quote:			Originally Posted by Cassy
	Thanks a bunch for everyone's help!! I really appreciate it. ^_^ I found out what the problem was! little happy dance I opened up the "Network Connections" window in XP, checked out the properties for my LAN connection and found that two checkmarks hadn't been checked to allow the network to work. Now I can connect to the PC. But it's a different story when I try to connect to the Mac from the PC. I get the same error as before: "The network you entered does not appear to be valid. Please choose another." I'm sure that Windows sharing is enabled on both computers.

again, try DAVE
www.thursby.com
at least as a diagnostic tool

Vexel · Mar 24th, 2005, 07:28 AM

I agree with MACSPECTRUM, I've used Dave only to make sure that the network was working properly. Then, once I know it's configured and I have all of my shares set up, uninstall Dave and you should be set. Once you make shortcuts on your PC to run to the iBook, they will always be there, even after uninstalling Dave

BTW... Thursby has a fully functional demo of Dave on their site