If you look at the diagram at the foot of this post, this is the layout for my home LAN. Quite simple; just two machines, a printer, and of course, the router.
The Dell laptop runs XP and X-Slacko 2.3.2. The 'big' Compaq desktop runs XP, and four Pups (Tahrpup 6.03; 'Chromebook' Pup - based on Precise 5.7.1; the classic Slacko 570, and, again, X-Slacko 2.3.2 - 'cos I love 570, and it's even better with the XFCE desktop).
All four Pups on the Compaq run Samba, and X-Slacko on the Dell does too. This is so that no matter which Pup is running on the Compaq, I can use the Dell to link into the main file system on the PC.....including access to the various external hard drives & printer, etc.
Until yesterday, we'd been with British Telecom since time out of mind, really. Their pricing is getting absolutely ridiculous, so for the first time ever, we've switched.....to TalkTalk (formerly Tiscali, now a sub-division of Carphone Warehouse). This means getting a new router. The ones supplied by UK ISP's are not at all bad; there's nowhere near as big a market for separate routers in this country as there is in, say, the States.
Anyway; to the problem. Normally, the Compaq can see & access shares on the Dell lappie, and access the router settings. The Dell will see & access shares on the Compaq, print to the printer via the network, and access the router settings.
Since changing over yesterday, things have altered slightly. The Compaq can still see & access the Dell.....but it cannot access the router for some reason.
The Dell, on the other hand, can access the router, can still print to the printer via the network.....but now can't see, or access shares on the Compaq. I've restarted Samba several times on both the Compaq and the Dell, but this hasn't made any difference. None of the Samba settings have changed in any way.
I'm suspecting the new router is the culprit, or at any rate, something not quite right with the ethernet connection; although, since printing works fine, and internet access works great, I'm guessing some of the default settings may need a bit of tweaking to set them up correctly.....but this is where I come unstuck. Networking is one of the very few areas I understand imperfectly, if at all.....and I really don't want to muck things up so they won't work. I'm fairly computer savvy, but I could do with some clear, simple suggestions as to what to try here..!
Any suggestion or ideas on this matter will be, as usual, much appreciated.
Mike.
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