File Sharing and Printer Sharing for Windows 95/98
Level of expertise: Easy..........Intermediate..........Hard
Always backup your data prior to making any configuration changes. ITS is not
responsible for loss of data.
This procedure requires some technical knowledge as it changes the network settings. If a
computer person is available, please consult with him or her before proceeding.
Caution: Always use strong passwords when activating file or print sharing. (For the password, use a mixture of upper and lower case letters plus numbers.) Recently released software finds exposed shares and sends the IPs of vulnerable computers to newsgroups. If you use file sharing without password protection, you're giving anyone on the Internet access to all your shared files as if he/she was sitting at your computer.
File and printer sharing allows users to share folders and printers over a network.
Setting up
First you need:
- Computers w/ Windows 95/98
- Network interface card w/ drivers
- Printer w/ cables and drivers
- Windows 95/98 CD-ROM
- Activated datajack
These 4 network components are required for Microsoft Networks:
- Client for Microsoft Networks
- the network card adapter
- NetBEUI
- TCP/IP
(IPX/SPX required if using Novell NetWare)
The Windows 95/98 CD-ROM maybe required for network component installation. PDCS machines maybe able to access backed-up Windows 95/98 CD-ROM cab files from C:\windows\option(s)\cabs when asked for CD-ROM.
Enabling File Sharing and Printer Sharing
To enable file sharing and printer sharing, go to Control Panel and Network, and click on the "File and Print sharing" button. Check off the first box to enable file sharing. Check off the second box to enable printer sharing. Click OK to save the file/printer sharing option window and click OK again in Network to save settings. Push Cancel to cancel any changes.
Users who wish to share files and printers with each other should be on the same workgroup and the same subnet.
To check your workgroup, go to Control Panel and Network, and select the Identification tab. Computer name is the unique name of the computer on the network. Workgroup is the name of the workgroup the computer will connect with to share files and data.
To check what subnet you are under, go to Control Panel and Network. Double-click on TCP/IP in installed network components box. Click on the IP Address tab. Your subnet is the 3rd set of digits in the IP address. (e.g. 111.222.xxx.111, subnet is xxx) IP addresses are assigned, with subnets usually assigned by what building on campus.
How to share drives/folders
Now that you have the computer setup for file sharing, you will need to determine the drives and/or folders that you would like to share over the workgroup. Once determined, open My Computer by double-clicking the icon on the desktop. The available drives should be visible in the My Computer window you just opened. Either right click on the drive that you would like to setup for file sharing, or double click the drive to find the folder that you would like to file share from, and right click on that folder. You should see a menu appear. Look for Sharing... in the menu list and select it. A window will appear with the button labelled Not Shared selected. Click on the button next to the Shared As: option to activate the text boxes. Type in the name you want your drive/folder to be shared as in the Share Name: text box. Under the Access Type: section, select Depends on Password. In the Passwords: section, type in a password for others to use when trying to access your shared drive/folder. Click OK.
NOTE: Not specifying a password will allow anyone on your network, including those in other departments, to view your shared files! Always use a password when setting up file sharing.
If you look in the My Computer window (which should still be open), the drive/folder that you just setup for file sharing should now appear with a little hand as part of the icon. This distinguishes the shared drives/folders from other drives/folders.
How to share printer
All of the computers that need to participate on the network should have their network components and settings setup and installed properly. Network Neighborhood, when double-clicked, should display all the computers and printers on your computer’s workgroup. There are two types of computers when printer sharing.
- The computer on the network that is directly connected to the shared printer is called the printer server. The printer server controls the printer and handles the printing from the other computers on the workgroups.
- Those other computers that want to print to a shared printer are called clients. Printing to a printer is also known as print jobs. Print jobs can be paused, spooling, cancelled, purged, have errors, or be pending.
- A networked printer, on the other hand, is a printer that is directly connected to the network. The printer is connected online through a network card installed in the printer itself. A networked printer does not require a printer server, and is stand-alone.
Whenever an error occurs or when troubleshooting, both printer server and printer clients should be checked to narrow down and find the source of the error.
Printer Server
- First setup the network components on the computer and enable printer sharing.
- Second, install the printer.
- Go to "My Computer" and double-click the "Printers" folder. Select the printer to share and single-right mouse click the printer and select "Sharing". Click on "Share as…" to share the printer.
Name is the name of the printer that will appear on the network.
Comments is an area where you can add comments about the printer.
Password allows only those with the password to print. When a password in inputted in the text field, then the password is enabled; leaving it blank disables it.
Click OK to confirm settings.
- Test printer
The shared printer should now appear in Network Neighborhood connected to the printer server.
Clients
- First setup the network components on the computer and enable printer sharing.
- Double-click on Network Neighborhood and look for the printer server computer icon.
- Double-clicking the printer server should show the attached, shared printer.
Right-click on the shared printer and click on Install to install the printer. A general printer installation wizard will come up.
- Install printer and test print.
Print Control window
The Print Control window is the same as Print Manager in Windows 3.11. It is a small utility in Windows that monitors the status of documents during printing and the status of the printer. Print Control windows is automatically activated and appears when printing. Print Control window is very useful and helpful when troubleshooting. During printing, the Print Control window will appear or appear in the lower right-hand corner of the taskbar near the clock. Double-clicking on the printer icon will maximize the Print Control window. It will display the following:
- Document name
- Status of document
- The owner of the document
- Progress of the printing
- Starting time and date.
Status will display one of the following:
Documents that are not printing but are still in the Print Control window are bad print jobs. If status reports any errors or if print job is locked-up or not working, delete or purge the job and try again. Try to find out the source of the error. Sometimes one bad print job can hold up the printing and print jobs pile up. The Print Control window should be purged, printer shutdown and restarted again to clear the memory.
General Troubleshooting
This checklist corrects common errors related to printer sharing.
- Check that all cables and wires are connected properly and tightly.
- Printer must be turned on before computer. If not, some printers are not recognized by the computer at boot-up.
- Printer server is turned on.
- Must login at Windows Login prompt. Must login to correct workgroup also. Failure to do so will result in no connection with the workgroup.
- Both clients and printer server must be connected online (network card and components setup and installed). Test by checking e-mail, browsing the web, or checking Network Neighborhood. If no response, then you may have a network problem. Check network components and setup.
- Printer and drivers must be installed and setup on both clients and server. Printer must be able to print properly (test print) from printer server and print jobs from clients. Use manufacturer’s drivers or updated drivers from manufacturer’s website whenever possible.
- Print from different programs. Try printing from 3rd party programs, MS Word/WordPerfect, e-mail (PINE), notepad,
- Check in Network Neighborhood twice if you can see other computers in the workgroup. Check to see if the printer server and the shared printer are there also. All must have same workgroup name and in same subnet. Check and see if other computers in workgroup can do the same.
- Reboot and login. Reboot and login to printer server. Make sure no one is trying to access the printer server at the time before rebooting.
- Check Print Control window for print jobs. Go to My Computer and double-click on Printers. Check for spooling, pending, error, or
- Check Print Control window in printer server for flooded print jobs. Purge or cancel.
- Check printer to see if it is ONLINE, usually indicated by a lit colored light next to a ONLINE button on the printer face. Check for reason printer is OFFLINE. Also check or any error codes and resolve.
- Check for paper jams, empty paper tray, or correct paper feed, and return the printer back to ONLINE status. This usually shows up as "Error printing" in Print Manager.
- Shutdown client and printer server. Restart, login, and retry printing.
Only I cannot print, but others can.
Client side:
- Check to see if you are connected online. Test using e-mail, or the Web. Check network setup again; check if cables plugged in properly
- Check Print Control window to see print job status.
- Check Print Control window on the printer server to see print job status. Clear errors or jams and retry.
- Print with different program.
- Reboot and login, retry printing.
- Reinstall printer drivers.
Server side:
- Check if it is connected online.
- Check printer cables.
- Test print from print server, use different programs.
- The printer should be able to print jobs from other computers. Run a test print from other client computers to see if it can prints jobs normally.
- Reboot and login, retry printing; Make sure the printer was turned on before the computer was, or else the computer might not recognize it.
- See if the computer is able to see other computers in Network Neighborhood and vice-versa.
- Check Print Control window for print jobs and status.
Everyone cannot print.
Server side:
- Check to see if the printer server is on and connected online. See if the computer is able to see other computers in Network Neighborhood and vice-versa.
- Make sure the printer was turned on before the computer was, or else the computer might not recognize it. Run a test print from several different programs to see if it prints.
- Check to see that the printer is running properly with no error codes, paper jams, ONLINE status, and if still has ink/toner/paper.
- Check Print Control window. Look for any errors and determine what the cause is. Purge all print jobs and try again.
- Reinstall/Update printer drivers (download from manufacturer’s website.)
- Is the clients and printer server in the same subnet?
- Try printing to another shared printer if avaliable.
Client side:
- Check to see if you can see other computers in Network Neighborhood, including printer server and shared printer.
- If not, then check the workgroup name if it is the same for those in the workgroup and the printer server. Check network connection.
- Is the clients and printer server in the same subnet?
I am connected online but cannot print and cannot see workgroup in Network Neighborhood
Client side:
- Reboot and login to workgroup.
- You might be in the wrong workgroup. Go to Control Panel and click on Networks. Click on the Identification tab and check to see if you are in the correct workgroup. See if others can see you in Network Neighborhood.
Troubleshooting for file sharing
This is the same as printer sharing, except with files instead of printers.
- Check wires and cables, must login to Windows and to the workgroup, file sharing enabled,
- Check that files are sharing-enabled. Shared folders have a hand holding the folder icon.
- Computers sharing files must be online and in the same workgroup, which can be checked by looking in Network Neighborhood.
The folder has full-access sharing properties but I cannot save a file.
- Check and make sure the attributes of the file itself is not set at Read-Only. You can check file attributes by selecting the file, right mouse click, and clicking on Properties.
I cannot copy a file from a shared computer to my local computer.
- Check to make sure you have enough room in the computer’s hard drive.
- If you have over 255 files and folders in a drive or a folder, you have too many. Windows has a maximum of 255 items per folder or drive. Move or delete some files and try again.
- The file maybe in use. Check with other workgroup users to see.
