I have recently purchased a netbook that runs Windows 7 Starter. So far the machine itself is great. However, I want to access files on my XP Home desktop and cannot seem to get past the "Enter Network Password" screen. I can see the XP in the network, but I try to access and have to enter the network password. I have tried to use the 'diagnose problem' option and am told that I do not have access to the XP. I have been searching for days for an answer and have tried so many different things that I cannot even remember all of them. Here's a list of things I've looked at and/or messed with, in no particular order: > Workgroup names are the same > User ID and passwords are the same on both machines > Shares are setup on both (I can access the Win7 share from XP without issue) > On the Win7: - Network discovery is on - File and Printer Sharing is on - Public Folder sharing is on - File sharing for devices that use 40 or 56 bit encryption is on - Password protected sharing is on [I have tried every combination possible here - they all result in the same problem] > On the XP: - I have created new shares - Turned off file sharing and then back on - Messed around with registry entries: restrictanonymous, forceguest, probably others (can't remember) - Created a new user id to match a new on one the Win7 - Run through the network setup wizard and the wireless wizard numerous times - Activated TCP/IP Netbios or something like that - Upgraded to SP3! - and a number of other things that I can't remember After having messed around with all that stuff, I still get the same exact issue: when I try to access the XP box from Win7, I have to enter a network password and I always get the same response: "Logon failure: unknown user name or bad password". The password entry screen on Win7 indicates that my domain is the name of my Win7, but I did not setup a domain, nor can I figure out how I would actually set or change that. Currently, when I display full network map on the Win7, I get a big question mark between the Win7 and XP computers. Even when the map looked better, I got the same error so I don't think this is the problem (but at this point my setup is probably so screwed up!) None of the posts I've found so far have solved the problem. HELP!

Doing too much can do just more damage than fixing it right to start with. I recommend you reset everything back to their defaults and start over. I remember making that same mistake early on in my career becoming a network technician (back in the early 91 or 92) It wasn't pretty and sure made our network guy mad ;) but I learned a lot that day.Are you getting any error message when you try and connect to the network?I would suggest you to refer to the below mentioned link and check if you have met all the criteria required to connect the Windows 7 computer to the network -1. Put all computers in the same workgroup.2. set the network location Home or Work.3. Make sure your firewall allows file and printer sharing.4. Turn on additional file and printer sharing options.5. Consider using password protected sharing.For the brief description of the above criteria refer to the link below -http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Networking-home-computers-running-different-versions-of-Windows If the issue persists you may use the network troubleshooter to check for resolution. Refer to the link below for using the troubleshooter- http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Using-the-Network-troubleshooter-in-Windows-7For an easy way to share see this http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-7/share-files-and-printers-between-windows-7-and-xp/ MCSE, MCSA, MCDST [If this post helps to resolve your issue, please click the "Mark as Answer" or "Helpful" button at the top of this message. By marking a post as Answered, or Helpful you help others find the answer faster.]

As it is a Windows XP Home, we should not need to input a user name and password because it only support Simple File Sharing. Please test to enable Guest account on Windows XP, check if there is a password. If so, clear it, reboot to see if we can access it now. If still not, we will need to check some group policy settings. As Windows XP Home does not have the Group Policy editor, we will need to use NTRights, included in Windows Server 2003 Resource Kit to reset the restrictions. 1. Since the entire Resource Kit package is large in size, we can download the NTRights tool from the following link directly: http://www.dynawell.com/reskit/microsoft/win2000/ntrights.zip Please Note: Since the web site is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information. 2. On the current problematic computer, double click on the downloaded file and Extract the "Ntrights.exe" to the C: partition. 3. Click Start, click Run, type CMD and press ENTER. 4. In the DOS prompt window, please input the following commands and press ENTER at the end of each line: C:\ntrights +r SeNetworkLogonRight -u guest Note: We should receive: "Granting SeNetworkLogonRight to guest ... successful". C:\ntrights -r SeDenyNetworkLogonRight -u guest Note: We should receive: "Revoking SeDenyNetworkLogonRight from guest ... successful" Note: The commands are case sensitive. 5. After that, please restart the compute and test the issue again.

Thank you!Thank you!And thank you!As it turns it out it was as simple as enabling the Guest account without a password. I did have to reset some of the registry entries I messed with but I have connected my Windows 7 Starter netbook to my XP home. I am happy again.Thanks once again.