HOWTO: Setup Samba peer-to-peer with Windows

**Shampyon** · July 12th, 2006

I'm now fully networked, write access and all, with my brother's PC. All thanks to the help recieved here, giving me the courage and the knowledge to get my hands dirty and actually set this up, where normally I would rely entirely on automated installers.

I doubt I'd be able to articulate how to do all this to anyone else, over the phone or 'net, but if anyone ever asked me to go over to their house to set up an XP/Ubuntu network I know I'd be able to do so with confidence.

I just wanted to say thank you to all the people involved in this thread for sharing your knowledge and being patient with our problems

**AsYouWish** · July 17th, 2006

So ah... didnt work.

I followed the instructions. When I go to map network drive on my winXP box, it looks but doesnt find anything. Im (really really) sure I have the ip address right and the share name right.

Could it be that I'm trying to share /home/share ? I tried changing some things according to the Wiki to be able to read/write home directories, but still, the samba share isnt being seen by my xp computer.

My xp account is Matt, and the account on my ubuntu machine is matt, with different passwords. I added matt, Matt, and just to be safe MATT, as samba users, still no effect.

I feel like I'm missing something... any clues?

Thanks

**Stormbringer** · July 17th, 2006

Originally Posted by AsYouWish

My xp account is Matt, and the account on my ubuntu machine is matt, with different passwords. I added matt, Matt, and just to be safe MATT, as samba users, still no effect.

Having different passwords across two machines for the same useraccount is a most common pitfall.

You added the useraccount to Samba (btw: there's no need for Upper-/Lowercase as Windows ignores the cases in a standard setup - so simply delete the ones having different spelling to the one of your Linux box) --- but with WHICH password?

- If you gave the user the password of your Linux box it's the wrong one. Change it with smbpasswd to the correct one.
- If you gave the user the password of your Windows box it's the right one and everything _should_ work ok.

Samba not displaying anything usually means...

...the user isn't enabled on the Linux box (sudo smbpasswd -e <username>)
...the password of the user accounts don't match.
...that one of the systems is inside the wrong workgroup.

That's all I can think of by looking at your post.

-Storm

**AsYouWish** · July 18th, 2006

Ok so... that didnt work. Here is my smb.conf. I've tried several differnt version but this is straight from your howto.

My smb.conf:

Code:

[global]
    ; General server settings
    netbios name = server
    server string =
    workgroup = mshome
    announce version = 5.0
    socket options = TCP_NODELAY IPTOS_LOWDELAY SO_KEEPALIVE SO_RCVBUF=8192 SO_SNDBUF=8192

    passdb backend = tdbsam
    security = user
    null passwords = true
    username map = /etc/samba/smbusers
    name resolve order = hosts wins bcast

    wins support = yes

    printing = CUPS
    printcap name = CUPS

    syslog = 1
    syslog only = yes

; NOTE: If you need access to the user home directories uncomment the
; lines below and adjust the settings to your hearts content.
;[homes]
    ;valid users = %S
    ;create mode = 0600
    ;directory mode = 0755
    ;browseable = no
    ;read only = no
    ;veto files = /*.{*}/.*/mail/bin/

; NOTE: Only needed if you run samba as a primary domain controller.
; Not needed as this config doesn't cover that matter.
;[netlogon]
    ;path = /var/lib/samba/netlogon
    ;admin users = Administrator
    ;valid users = %U
    ;read only = no

; NOTE: Again - only needed if you're running a primary domain controller.
;[Profiles]
    ;path = /var/lib/samba/profiles
    ;valid users = %U
    ;create mode = 0600
    ;directory mode = 0700
    ;writeable = yes
    ;browseable = no

; NOTE: Inside this place you may build a printer driver repository for
; Windows - I'll cover this topic in another HOWTO.
[print$]
    path = /var/lib/samba/printers
    browseable = yes
    guest ok = yes
    read only = yes
    write list = root
    create mask = 0664
    directory mask = 0775

[printers]
    path = /tmp
    printable = yes
    guest ok = yes
    browseable = no

; Uncomment if you need to share your CD-/DVD-ROM Drive
;[DVD-ROM Drive]
    ;path = /media/cdrom
    ;browseable = yes
    ;read only = yes
    ;guest ok = yes

[Files]
    path = /media/share/
    browseable = yes
    read only = no
    guest ok = no
    create mask = 0644
    directory mask = 0755
    force user = matt
    force group = matt

So my ubuntu acct is matt with password1 and my winxp accoutn is Matt with password2. I set and enabled user 'matt' with password2 in smbpasswd. Still nothing. When I enter \\192.168.1.102\Files I get a pause, and then a 'could not be located' error.

Does it matter Im running this on a PPC?
Does it matter that \media\share is not actual media but just a dir I created?
Does it matter that i'm setting this up via VNC to desktop 1 (not 0)

Argh. Sorry to be a pain. Thanks.

**Stormbringer** · July 18th, 2006

Your smb.conf looks fine - and it shouldn't matter that you're running Ubuntu PPC.

Try the following command inside a Terminal ...

# smbclient -L localhost -U%

When asked for a password you need to type "password2".

If the command returns an error you either entered the wrong password or there's something fishy with your samba setup. You should see something like this ...

Code:

Domain=[STORMBRINGER] OS=[Unix] Server=[Samba 3.0.22-Ubuntu]

        Sharename       Type      Comment
        ---------       ----      -------
        netlogon        Disk      Network Logon Service
        print$          Disk      Printer Drivers
        IPC$            IPC       IPC Service (nebuchanezzar)
        ADMIN$          IPC       IPC Service (nebuchanezzar)
Domain=[MSHOME] OS=[Unix] Server=[Samba 3.0.22-Ubuntu]

        Server               Comment
        ---------            -------
        NEBUCHADNEZZAR       

        Workgroup            Master
        ---------            -------
        STORMBRINGER         NEBUCHADNEZZAR

If you get a result similar to the one from right above then samba is running and doing fine.

If not, let's see if Windows is freaking out...

Try to ping your Windows box from Linux and vice versa just to make absolutely sure that you're network connection is fine.

If this works please take a look into the Firewall control panel in Windows and make sure that the firewall is either disabled or "File- and Printersharing" is allowed to pass through the firewall.

Try to disable "Require SignOrSeal" (encrypted smb-connections) in Windows XP ...

To make this an easy job simply paste to following lines into notepad and save it as DisableReqSignOrSeal.reg (or any filename you like)

Code:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Netlogon\Parameters]
"requiresignorseal"=dword:00000000

Open the location where you saved the file, double-click, and confirm the dialog.

Reboot and try again...

It should be sufficient to paste this line into any open Explorer windows: \\192.168.1.102\Files

If it still doesn't work, try to connect to the share from the command-line:

net use x: \\192.168.1.102\Files password2 /user:matt /persistent:yes

Try these steps and tell me how it turned out.

**AsYouWish** · July 18th, 2006

Yeah... I'm a retard. Forgot about ZoneAlarm... silently blocking me from the outside world. Couldnt ping the XP box from Ubuntu so I added 192.168.1.100-110 to the trusted zone and bingo. Fully functional.

Thanks so much.

**PENGUIN-PC** · July 18th, 2006

Well first of all I would like to say thank you very much for this post!!

But Im haveing a few issues that I can't quite solve. I can ping my linux box from a windows box and vice versa, but I can't exchange any data or map a drive. I tried everything in your post, but I still get, from both boxes, that permission is required.

Here is my output when I type

smbclient -L localhost -U%

Domain=[WINBLOWS] OS=[Unix] Server=[Samba 3.0.22]

Sharename Type Comment
--------- ---- -------
ADMIN$ IPC IPC Service ()
IPC$ IPC IPC Service ()
MyFiles Disk
print$ Disk
Domain=[WINBLOWS] OS=[Unix] Server=[Samba 3.0.22]

Server Comment
--------- -------
DARE-DEVIL

Workgroup Master
--------- -------
WINBLOWS DARE-DEVIL

and this is my smb.cfg file setup

[global]
; General server settings
netbios name = dare-devil
server string =
workgroup = WINBLOWS
announce version = 5.0
socket options = TCP_NODELAY IPTOS_LOWDELAY SO_KEEPALIVE SO_RCVBUF=8192 SO_SNDBUF=8192
;interfaces = lo, eth0
;bind interfaces only = true

passdb backend = tdbsam
security = user
null passwords = true
username map = /etc/samba/smbusers
name resolve order = hosts wins bcast

wins support = yes

printing = CUPS
printcap name = CUPS

syslog = 1
syslog only = yes

; NOTE: If you need access to the user home directories uncomment the
; lines below and adjust the settings to your hearts content.
;[homes]
;valid users = %S
;create mode = 0600
;directory mode = 0755
;browseable = no
;read only = no
;veto files = /*.{*}/.*/mail/bin/

; NOTE: Only needed if you run samba as a primary domain controller.
; Not needed as this config doesn't cover that matter.
;[netlogon]
;path = /var/lib/samba/netlogon
;admin users = dare-devil
;valid users = %U
;read only = no

; NOTE: Again - only needed if you're running a primary domain controller.
;[Profiles]
;path = /var/lib/samba/profiles
;valid users = %U
;create mode = 0600
;directory mode = 0700
;writeable = yes
;browseable = no

; NOTE: Inside this place you may build a printer driver repository for
; Windows - I'll cover this topic in another HOWTO.
[print$]
path = /var/lib/samba/printers
browseable = yes
guest ok = yes
read only = yes
write list = root
create mask = 0664
directory mask = 0775

[printers]
path = /tmp
printable = yes
guest ok = yes
browseable = no

;Uncomment if you need to share your CD-/DVD-ROM Drive
[DVD-ROM Drive]
path = /media/dvd-rw
browseable = yes
read only = yes
guest ok = yes

[MyFiles]
path = /home/dare-devil/
browseable = yes
read only = yes
guest ok = yes
create mask = 0644
directory mask = 0755
force user = dare-devil
force group = WINBLOWS

Any help would be greatly appreciated Storm!! Again thanks so much for your time you have put into making this post.

**Stormbringer** · July 18th, 2006

Ok, let's see if we can get your problem solved ...

- About the "permission is required" thing:
What's the exact error message and what do you do to get it?

- About your smb.conf
Wait a sec; what's that?

Code:

[MyFiles]
    path = /home/dare-devil/
    browseable = yes
    read only = yes
    guest ok = yes
    create mask = 0644
    directory mask = 0755
    force user = dare-devil
    force group = WINBLOWS

Are you trying to share your home directory? That won't work out that way.

EDIT What's the "force group" ??? "WINBLOWS"? All uppercase? That looks dead wrong unless you created such a group yourself.

Code:

    force user = dare-devil
    force group = dare-devil

Would be more right.
/EDIT

If you like to "share" your home, then you should do it that way instead ...

Code:

[global]
    ; General server settings
    netbios name = dare-devil
    server string =
    workgroup = WINBLOWS
    announce version = 5.0
    socket options = TCP_NODELAY IPTOS_LOWDELAY SO_KEEPALIVE SO_RCVBUF=8192 SO_SNDBUF=8192
    ;interfaces = lo, eth0
    ;bind interfaces only = true

    passdb backend = tdbsam
    security = user
    null passwords = true
    username map = /etc/samba/smbusers
    name resolve order = hosts wins bcast

    wins support = yes

    printing = CUPS
    printcap name = CUPS

    syslog = 1
    syslog only = yes

; NOTE: If you need access to the user home directories uncomment the
; lines below and adjust the settings to your hearts content.
[homes]
    valid users = %S
    create mode = 0600
    directory mode = 0755
    browseable = no
    read only = no
    veto files = /*.{*}/.*/mail/bin/

; NOTE: Only needed if you run samba as a primary domain controller.
; Not needed as this config doesn't cover that matter.
;[netlogon]
    ;path = /var/lib/samba/netlogon
    ;admin users = dare-devil
    ;valid users = %U
    ;read only = no

; NOTE: Again - only needed if you're running a primary domain controller.
;[Profiles]
    ;path = /var/lib/samba/profiles
    ;valid users = %U
    ;create mode = 0600
    ;directory mode = 0700
    ;writeable = yes
    ;browseable = no

; NOTE: Inside this place you may build a printer driver repository for
; Windows - I'll cover this topic in another HOWTO.
[print$]
    path = /var/lib/samba/printers
    browseable = yes
    guest ok = yes
    read only = yes
    write list = root
    create mask = 0664
    directory mask = 0775

[printers]
    path = /tmp
    printable = yes
    guest ok = yes
    browseable = no

;Uncomment if you need to share your CD-/DVD-ROM Drive
[DVD-ROM Drive]
    path = /media/dvd-rw
    browseable = yes
    read only = yes
    guest ok = yes

The difference is that I enabled the [homes] section and removed the share you declared at the bottom of the file.

If the directory in question (/home/dare-devil) *IS NOT* the home directory of a valid user account but a badly placed data directory you like to share on the network you may have an issue with the filesystem permissions.

# sudo chmod 0777 /home/dare-devil
# sudo chown dare-devil.dare-devil /home/dare-devil

Again - DO NOT ALTER the permissions if it's the home directory of a valid user account! You may break your local login.
You've been warned.

Restart samba (sudo /etc/init.d/samba restart) and map your home-directory (commandline example):

net use h: \\dare-devil\dare-devil your_password /user:dare-devil /persistent:yes

Awaiting your answer ...

-Storm

**PENGUIN-PC** · July 18th, 2006

Ok...thanks for the quick reply, I expected it to be a day or two!!

Anyhow, in response, yes WINBLOWS is the name of the WORKGROUP I created on my windows box, and I just thought it would keep things simple if I used that as my force group. Did I figure wrong in my understanding of how this all works? I am new to samba, so i really appreciate all your help.

Yes, /home/dare-devil is the home directory of a valid user account. I would like to share the whole directory, and I only want to share it with my home network not anything outside of it. I would like to be able to uncomment out the following so I can use your suggestion.

;interfaces = lo, eth0
;bind interfaces only = true

Do these lines have anything to do with preventing me from being able to use the connection?

As for the exact error message I get here is the screen dump for you.

Ohh and it seems that I already kinda bokre my login on my linux box, because it was telling me that I shouldn't be sharing my home folder or something like that ahhhh

Thanks again for any, and all your help, it reall is appreciated storm, your're a great penguin!

**Stormbringer** · July 18th, 2006