[Samba] URGENT problem: Win-NT4 connecting to Samba

[Rainer Hantsch]

Hello!

I just joined this mailing list because I experience extreme problems in a
network where I added now a Linux-box. Because I must get this fixed urgently,
I describe here what I have.

If somebody has a solution (must be something with the configuration), please
help. -- THANKS !


SETUP:
======
Server : SuSE Linux 8.1 with SAMBA 2.2.5

Clients: Windows-NT4.0 Workstation with SP4/5/6

PDC    : There is NO DOMAIN, everything is running as a "Workgroup"
         Network, because it is so small (only 5 PC's).

Passw. : Encryption of passwords is disabled and all Win-Clients have
         the patch for plain password installed.

Firewall: The whole LAN is definded in the trusted IP range. Also, the
         SuSEfirewall is configured (with YAST2) to NOT protect the server
         from internal, so it is really wide open from the LAN side to
         keep problems away. - So my problems cannot be caused by the
         firewall. (Again, I have a similar setup otherwhere, and there it
         works!)


Basically, all what I want to do is using the existing mail-server als
printer-spooler, too, because the old NT-server is out of capacity and does
not have enough drive space for that, too.
Also, I have running similar installations (with an older SAMBA and Linux) at
other locations, and there I have not this strange problems (except that I
also have to enter the password again when the first networked drive
connection is established...)


Problem 1:
----------
After entering the password on the NT client to login as user, Windows
establishes all permanent network connections. All of them go to the Windows
server, and this works.
Now there is also a file share to SAMBA. When the first connection is tried, I
have to enter in the password again.
It is also very difficult to define the first connection. I have to execute
\\10.0.0.2 first (with the IP of the Linux-server), to be able to even see the
server's shares. After the first connection, I can proceed as usual under
windoze.

--> CAN THIS BE FIXED? It is really ugly. Because the Linux-server is
    permanently online, I have to use good passwords, and they are not
    easy to remember and enter...
    Best would be when Windoze remembers this password and logs in
    automatically.


Problem 2:
----------
Because it is not possible to use printer queues on SAMBA without a previously
established connection to a file share, I establish a dummy connection to
the server's CD-ROM drive.
Then I am able to connect the printer queue and this normally works more or
less.

Here I have the situation that Windoze NT constantly tells in the status
window for the printer, that it cannot open/access the printer. But it can
print. I never had this problem before, every NT4 machine I connected before
was able to view the printer queue!

--> What is the problem here? Is there a fix?

If required, I can also supply the smb.conf file for your reference.




mfg

  Ing. Rainer Hantsch