Hi,
I’m having a strange problem.
I’ve configured openSUSE 11 to connect a Windows network and indeed it is working, but not 100%.
Logged as an user, I can see the workgroup and the computers connected… I can access some computers in that network… BUT I can’t access other computers.
However, if I log in as root I can access all the computers.
Does anyone know what could be the problem?
Thanks in advance.
Hi and welcome to the Forums.
Is this a work network with a pro server or a home/small office workgroup?
And please elaborate on “BUT I can’t access other computers”
Thanks 
It is a home workgroup. There are four machines using windows and one using linux.
On suse, as normal user, I can access two machines (192.168.1.134 and 192.168.1.10), no problem. But the other two (192.168.1.8 and 192.168.1.64) I can’t.
Actually, when I access the network I can see all the computers connected, but I can see only the shared folder of two of them. The other two I can’t see the shared folders, it is empty. If I try smb://IP/, instead to double click on the computer icon, the same happens and the shared folders doesn’t show up.
However, if I log in as root… I can access all the computers and see all the shared folders that I can’t see as normal user.
I can’t imagine what might be different if root is the user. But FWIW can you please post the contents of the [global] section in the file smb.conf located at /etc/samba/smb.conf. And also please post the response you get from this command in a console:
sudo pdbedit -L
Thanks
[global]
workgroup = CASA
printing = cups
printcap name = cups
printcap cache time = 750
cups options = raw
map to guest = Bad User
include = /etc/samba/dhcp.conf
logon path = \\%L\profiles\.msprofile
logon home = \\%L\%U\.9xprofile
logon drive = P:
usershare allow guests = No
security = user
netbios name = dell103
name resolve order = bcast host lmhosts wins
add machine script = /usr/sbin/useradd -c Machine -d /var/lib/nobody -s /bin/false %m$
domain logons = No
domain master = No
Nothing happens. It doesn’t list any user.
Thanks.
I had a hunch – but I can’t see anything wrong in those that might be different for a root user and a normal user. I don’t have a clue what this curious behaviour might be.
It’s not a big problem because I can access all the computers using the root and copy the file to/from the user space. The pain are the files I just want to access, not copy, such music and movie.
Thanks anyway 
Raelly strange. Are you using the experimental KDE4?
No, GNOME.
OK I’m defeated.
There might be a workaround for your case:
The pain are the files I just want to access, not copy, such music and movie.
You could mount the share/s you access regularly as network shares and they would appear in your filesystem as if they were a hard drive residing in your computer.
For example if you have a share at IP address 192.168.1.8 on a windows machine, with a windows network name “music”, so it’s address in Linux was e.g.
smb://192.168.1.8/music, and you wanted the files to appear in your userspace at e.g. /home/yourname/winmusic, then you could make a directory /home/yourname/winmusic and enter this line into fstab (the filesystem table, located at /etc/fstab):
//192.168.1.8/music /home/yourname/winmusic cifs
username=billybob,password=billybob_password,_netdev,uid=yourname,gid=users 0 0
Billybob and billybob_password is the owner of the share on the windows machine. Yourname is the userspace owner on the Suse machine.
That might ease your pain.
PS this bulletin board has a bug. The word “_netdev” above has no spaces in it, but the bulletin board places a space in it erroneously. If you use this code, be careful of that.
openLonE wrote:
>
> swerdna;1860907 Wrote:
>> the contents of the [global] section in the file smb.conf located at
>> /etc/samba/smb.conf
>
>
> Code:
> --------------------
> [global]
> workgroup = CASA
> printing = cups
> printcap name = cups
> printcap cache time = 750
> cups options = raw
> map to guest = Bad User
> include = /etc/samba/dhcp.conf
> logon path = \%L\profiles.msprofile
> logon home = \%L%U.9xprofile
> logon drive = P:
> usershare allow guests = No
> security = user
> netbios name = dell103
> name resolve order = bcast host lmhosts wins
> add machine script = /usr/sbin/useradd -c Machine -d /var/lib/nobody -s
> /bin/false %m$ domain logons = No
> domain master = No
> --------------------
>
>
> swerdna;1860907 Wrote:
>> And also please post the response you get from this command in a
>> console:
>> >
> Code:
> --------------------
> > > sudo pdbedit -L
> --------------------
>> >
> Nothing happens. It doesn’t list any user.
>
> Thanks.
>
>
openlonE;
Why this works as root and on two machines is the real mystery. You really
should add users with
smbpasswd -a <username>
P. V.
“The entropy of a closed system can never decrease”, 2nd Law of Thermodynamics
Didn’t work. I can mount only those folders which I have access. Indeed, when I access a shared folder, it is mounted automatically in my Desktop. But for those I don’t have access, I can’t mount.
I guess I will have to use a nested window login as root and play a music or a movie inside that window 
I know it should work. But I don’t know… maybe there is a ghost inside my computer.
I’m 100% sure that all the computers are in the same workgroup. I’ve checked it yesterday and also their IPs.
Add a user didn’t work too.
Thanks all.
openLonE wrote:
>
<snip>
>
> PV;1861171 Wrote:
>> Why this works as root and on two machines is the real mystery. You
>> really should add users with
>>
>> smbpasswd -a <username>
>>
>> Also be sure all the computers are in the same workgroup “CASA”
>> –
>> P. V.
>> “The entropy of a closed system can never decrease”, 2nd Law of
>> Thermodynamics
> I’m 100% sure that all the computers are in the same workgroup. I’ve
> checked it yesterday and also their IPs.
>
> Add a user didn’t work too.
>
> Thanks all.
>
>
Are all of the clients W2000, XP or VISTA? If you have older Win9X or ME you
will need to enable Lanman authorization. To do that add this to
your /etc/samba/smb.conf.
“lanman auth = yes” and “client lanman auth = yes”.
Then restart by running as root “rcsmb restart”.
P. V.
“The entropy of a closed system can never decrease”, 2nd Law of Thermodynamics
PV wrote:
P. V.
“The entropy of a closed system can never decrease”, 2nd Law of Thermodynamics
Try creating another Linux user and logging in as the new user and see if you can browse the shares as the new user. You can delete the new user and new user’s directories later if it doesn’t work or manipulate your name and directories across to replace the new user if it does work.
All the windows machines are XP.
The only problem that I see it is because the printer, which is not shared, so noboby can access it.
Yes, I do. It list all the shared folders and some info about the computer. Oh, and to login that way I need to use the win password and not the password set with “smbpasswd”.
Yes, I can.
Ok, it worked. I have created a new user (netest) and it worked just fine.
How can I manipulate? Should I change this new user login to my login (netest to lone) and point the home directory to my home directory?
You should not use the hidden files in the old username. They contain setup files and configuration files, one of which might be responsible for this problem. So try these steps:
Step 1
Copy over any files you want to keep from the old home of lone to the new home of netest, excluding hidden files. I mean files like documents, media, bookmarks and so on. If they come across with strange ownership, use this command when you finish, issued as root user in a console to make them all to be owned by the new user (netest):
chown -R netest:users /home/netest/
That should take care of anything sitting in netest’s territory that’s still owned by lone.
Step 2
Reserve all the files in lone’s old home for a week until you’re sure you’ve got everything. And at the same time make the name “lone” available for use in the new persona. GoTo Yast –> Security and Users –> User and Group Management. Highlight username “lone” and edit it. Change it to something like oldlone. Accept option to change home directories to the new name (oldlone). When you finish everything that used to be stored under lone will be named for and owned by oldlone. That makes the name “lone” available.
Step 3
Here you change the persona of netest to that of lone, so you don’t want to be logged in as either for a while. So log out and log back in as root. Then goto yast –> security and users –> etc change the name of netest to the unused name lone, including the home directories option.
Log out as root and in as lone.
Finished
In a week (or wahtever) you can delete the name oldlone and its directories in Security and Users in Yast.
This looks long but only atkes a small time – but needs concentration.
I think I know what is the problem… the network doesn’t like my nickname!
I did all you have explained to manipulate the account. And guess what! After log in as lone (old netest) I couldn’t access those computers!
So, I log in as oldlone (which is the “broken” account) and… I get access to all the computers that I couldn’t before!
It tells me that the config is correct and the network doesn’t like my nickname 
If I change that oldlone back to lone, I will get the same problem. Really… I have no idea why it is happening.
I guess I will have to set a different nickname to my account.
That’s great (in a way) to isolate the problem. So just get rid of the new username in Yast and its directories and in Yast change the old “lone” nic to “loner”, an excellent name for a computer geek.
Yeah, in some way it solves my problem. Thanks for the support