WINS misery.. please help :(

[Tim Carr]

    I have been trying all day to make WINS work for me, unsuccessfully.
I have a rather complex setup, that works fine over a LAN, WINS and
all.  However, the LAN was a substitution for the internet, and when the
setup is moved to the real internet, the WINS aspect of my setup does
not work.

    I need some information about WINS over different subnets.  I have
two machines both running linux + samba, one at say 24.226.65.40 (called
MASQ), and one at 216.225.95.65 (called GATEWEAVER) (these are not
actual ips, but close).  Both are in different workgroups, and therefore
both are set to be domain masters.  MASQ is set to be the WINS client
connecting to GATEWEAVER's external IP address, GATEWEAVER is the WINS
server.  When I step up the debugging on nmbd and check log.nmb, I see
this on the client end - "WINS server at 216.225.95.65 is not
responding", in addition to the fact that MASQ never becomes the domain
master like it should be (i guess cuz it can't ask the WINS server if
there already is a DM).  However, the WINS server is responding just
fine to other windows clients behind MASQ (client).  These windows
clients are getting to the WINS server via a tunnel & proper forwarding
between MASQ & GATEWEAVER.  In GATEWEAVER's samba/var/locks/wins.dat I
can see all the windows clients, but *not* MASQ.

    I tried having MASQ conenct to the *internal* adapter of GATEWEAVER,
thru the tunnel I made.  The errors are of course then different.  The
client then claims it can't find the internal adapter of the server on
UNICAST_SUBNET, and the server claims that the client isn't responding
to queries about it's internal adapter.  In this case also, the client
does not become a domain master like it's supposed to.  In the server's
wins.dat, I can see MASQ, but it only registers MASQ's external IP, plus
there is no MASQ<1b> (cuz it didn't become DM).

    Even if you don't understand the way I have these machines
tunnelled, I *need* information about WINS and netbios over the
internet.  Can it be done? Do I hafta route something weird? Please do
NOT ask me to change my configuration of machines -- it's necessary the
way i've outlined 'em :( .. But ALL information about WINS over the
internet would be greatly appreciated!

    Please reply soon, to tcarr at themanor.net and cygnusx__1 at hotmail.com
(if CCing not possible, just themanor.net).

Thanks in advance,

    Tim