[Samba] "Couldn't find service home"

Don Piven samba at piven.org
Fri Sep 8 12:46:15 GMT 2006


Dan Baker wrote:
> Greetings,
> I'm having a problem with configuring Samba.  I am trying to connect to 
> a linux box running Ubuntu with my os x laptop.  When I try and connect 
> I get prompted for a username/password.  When I enter them apple gives 
> me a weird error and it doesn't work.  I'm pretty the problem is with my 
> config on the linux side.  The error log has this printed every time I 
> tried to connect:
> 
> [2006/09/07 13:09:24, 0] smbd/service.c:make_connection(851)
>   daniel-bakers-c (192.168.1.3) couldn't find service home
> 
> Here is all the things I could thing to test and include:
> 
> --------------------
> 
> dan at Newton:/etc/samba$ smbclient //Newton/home/dan
> Password:
> Domain=[NEWTON] OS=[Unix] Server=[Samba 3.0.22]
> tree connect failed: NT_STATUS_BAD_NETWORK_NAME

[much deletia from smb.conf]

> [global]
>         workgroup = LINUX_SERVER
>         server string = %h server (Samba, Ubuntu)
[...]
> [Newton]
>         path = /home/dan
>         read only = No
>         guest ok = Yes

You are getting some things mixed up.  Since your smb.conf (I am 
assuming that you posted it in its entirety) doesn't have a "netbios 
name" setting, Samba will use the hostname portion of your machine's DNS 
domain name, which I gather is "Newton.something.or.other".  I would 
rather specify an explicit netbios name (e.g., "netbios name = newton") 
in smb.conf to make things clear -- and also to avoid any problems with 
accessing Samba should you rename your machine for any reason.

When you do this:
 > dan at Newton:/etc/samba$ smbclient //Newton/home/dan

... the UNC you are providing specifies a server name of "Newton", which 
is good, and a share name of "home", which is ungood because Newton 
doesn't have a share by that name (due to not having a [home] section in 
smb.conf).  However, there IS a [Newton] section (which points toward 
your /home/dan directory and gives it a share name of "Newton"), so the 
UNC //Newton/Newton *should* do what I think you're trying to do 
(namely, connect to your home directory).  But there are better ways of 
doing that.

Look at the [homes] section in the smb.conf manpage to see how Samba can 
handle users' home directories... or at the very least rename that 
"Newton" share to "dan" and use a UNC of //Newton/dan to get to your 
home directory.

Hope this helps!

Don Piven


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