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Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Postby bbarry » Fri Dec 18, 2009 5:10 am

I have two computers running Win 7 Ultimate - one is 64 bit and the other is 32 bit. On both computers I can create and leave a homegroup, but on neither computer can I join a workgroup that exists on the other computer. I.E., both computers only want to create a homegroup.....neither want to join,

Would appreciate any suggestions for resolving this issue. Thanks in advance............
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Re: Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Postby shreader » Fri Dec 18, 2009 8:22 pm

You know you will need tha same password on both?
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Re: Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Postby bbarry » Fri Dec 18, 2009 9:55 pm

shreader wrote:You know you will need tha same password on both?

Yea, but I never get that far. I created a homegroup w/password on the first computer.........sure enough, it says that this computer has "joined".

Then I go to the second computer ready to join and enter the same password. but this second computer doesn't recognize the homegroup I created on the first computer. The second computer wants to create it's own homegroup; I even let it do this once and then changed the password to be the same as on the first computer. Still didn't work.

I went to a Microsoft website and read that I need to ensure that Peer Network Grouping and HomeGroup Provider services were started. HomeGroup Provider was not, so I started it and changed it from Manual to Auto. I still couldn't get the second computer to recognize the homegroup created on the first computer..........it still wanted to create its own.

I next went to the MIcrosoft Technet and read an article entitled "Windows 7 Homegroup: Walkthrough". In this article, they say to first change the active network on both computers from Home network to Public network. Then when you are creating a homegroup or adding the second computer to the homegroup, you change the location back to Home network and follow the normal steps for creating/adding. I haven't tried this process yet, mainly because it was published back in Aug '09 before the final release of Win 7 and I wasn't sure it was still a valid process. But I think I will now try it.

So that's where I stand...................been fighting this problem on/off for two days. :bashhead Thanks.
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Re: Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Postby bbarry » Sat Dec 19, 2009 8:05 am

I FINALLY solved the issue. My problem was that the two computers had the same computer name. I guess I did this inadvertenly or by default, I can't remember. Anyway, after I gave the second computer a different name and rebooted, it saw the HomeGroup created on the first computer. So now I can share printers and stuff. ^*^

Sometimes (most of the time, lol) it's the simple things that cause me problems. :embarrassed:
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Re: Can't Get Win 7 Homegroup to Work Properly

Postby shreader » Sat Dec 19, 2009 2:21 pm

Wat to go bbarry on getting it working & not giving up ^*^ :yesnod:
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