Cannot Browse Network Neighborhood if PDC Is on Separate Subnet

View products that this article applies to.

This article was previously published under Q238853

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SYMPTOMS

If your Microsoft Windows NT Server-based Primary Domain Controller (PDC) is on a separate subnet and you double-click Entire Network in the Network Neighborhood window, you may receive the following error message:

Network Neighborhood

Unable to browse the network.
The network is not accessible.
For more information, look in the Help Index at the topic "Network Troubleshooter".

Also, if you try to use the "net view" command at a command prompt, you may receive the following error message:

Error 6118: The computer(s) sharing resources in this workgroup cannot be located. The computer(s) might have been restarted. Wait a few minutes, and then try again. If the problem persists, make sure your network-adapter settings are correct.

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CAUSE

This problem occurs because Windows 98 incorporates an update to the server component (Vserver.vxd) that is also available as a hotfix for Windows 95. This update addresses handling of null-session connections in a user-level security environment. When connecting to a Windows 98/95 Browse Master, the redirector always uses a null session; the Browse Master generates an Error 5 (Access Denied) if there is already an authenticated NetBIOS session open. If the browse master is a Windows NT-based computer, this does not occur, because the redirector issues the request on the existing, authenticated session.

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RESOLUTION

A supported hotfix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that this article describes. Apply it only to systems that are experiencing this specific problem.

To resolve this problem, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the hotfix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services telephone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support (http://support.microsoft.com/contactus/?ws=support)

Note In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The usual support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later:

   Date     Time    Version   Size    File name Platform
   ------------------------------------------------------------------------
   09/29/99 02:00pm 4.00.1122 157,285 VREDIR.VXD Windows 95 (all versions)
   09/20/99 04:54pm 4.10.2150 165,461 VREDIR.VXD Windows 98 (retail)
   09/20/99 03:41pm 4.10.2226 165,461 VREDIR.VXD Windows 98 Second Edition
   01/16/01 03:09pm 4.90.3004 161,849 VREDIR.VXD Windows Millennium Edition

The Portuguese (Brazilian) version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later:

   Date     Time    Version   Size    File name Platform
   ------------------------------------------------------------------------
   10/14/99 09:14pm 4.00.1122 157,285 VREDIR.VXD Windows 95 (all versions)
   10/14/99 07:39pm 4.10.2150 165,461 VREDIR.VXD Windows 98 (retail)
   10/14/99 09:14pm 4.10.2226 165,461 VREDIR.VXD Windows 98 Second Edition

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WORKAROUND

To work around this problem:

If there are no Windows NT-based computers on the subnet, move one into the subnet to act as the Browse Master.
If there is already a Windows NT-based computer on the subnet, move all of the Windows 98/95-based clients into a workgroup with the same name as the Windows NT domain
If the only enabled Browse Master is a Windows 95-based computer, configure it for share-level security.
If the only enabled Browse Master is a Windows 95-based computer, remove the update referenced in MORE INFORMATION below.

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STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

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MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about Windows 95 hotfixes, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

161020 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/161020/EN-US/ ) Implementing Windows 95 Updates

For additional information about Windows 98 and Windows 98 Second Edition hotfixes, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

206071 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/206071/EN-US/ ) General Information on Windows 98 and SE Hotfixes

For additional information about Windows ME hotfixes, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

295413 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/295413/EN-US/ ) General Information About Windows Millennium Edition Hotfixes

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