[Samba] Why does simple smb.conf demand password?

[Larry Alkoff]

I am trying to setup a simple Samba server using the instructions in the O'Reilly book
"Using Samba" first edition on a Slackware 9.1 system which uses Samba 2.2.8a.
The windows machine uses windows 98SE.

The instructions under Server Configuration starting page 93
and Disk Share Configuration starting page 96
had me setup a very simple smb.conf which should then appear in Network Neighborhood.
It it does appear in NN and also using the command "net view".

Then I should be able to click on the icon in NN and see the disk single share I have setup.
When I try to do this I get a logon screen that demands a password.

The instructions say that 
"We set the guest ok parameter to yes which is not very security conscious but there are some password
issues that we need to understand before setting up individual users and authentification.  For the moment,
this will sidestep these issues and let anyone connect to the share."

This is fine with me and in fact, it's the password issues that I don't understand yet and want to get straight later.

Why can't I connect without the demand for a password?
How can I get around it before getting into the complexities of password management?

Here is the short smb.conf:

[global]
netbios name = linda
server string = Samba %v on %L
workgroup = lanet

[data]
  path = /export/data
  comment = data drive
  volume = sample-data-drive
  writable = yes
  guest ok = yes

I also made sure to setup the subdirectory /export/data and chown it to 777.

Larry Alkoff





Larry Alkoff N2LA - Austin TX