Re: Samba

[Johannes Wiedersich <johannes@physik.blm.tu-muenchen.de>]

[please keep your replies to the list, so that others might help as well.]

Lynn Kilroy wrote:
>> Date: Thu, 23 Apr 2009 13:16:27 +0200
> 
> 
> In my initial e-mail, the one asking about setting up a linux file
> server, I said explicitly that I wanted the sharing to be mutual
> between a Windows PC and a Linux PC.  I don't understand how I had
> three responses all saying Samba was this program if it is only to
> allow Linux to work with files on a Windows PC and not vice-versa.

Samba works both ways, as a client _and_ as a server. To log into your
linux is a different thing from copying files, though.

> There are two Windows PCs, and there are corresponding accounts for
> each of them.  According to the computer, as best as I can tell,
> Samba is in fact running.  

How did you in fact check that? What is the output of 'smbstatus'?

>                           According to the docs, it can be used to
> allow Windows computers to talk to and read and write files on a
> Linux server.  However, everything they suggested and I tried {with
> appropriate mods for the network and all that} have consistently
> failed.

It seems you did something wrong. You better read the docs.

> The error may not necessarily be the Samba system.  If it is, I would
> imagine that, since Samba is so simple to setup, it would be
> immenently visible in the configuration file, plain as the nose on
> your face, if you will.

'testparm' checks the config for you. Please, read the docs.

> It could very well be something with the Windows PCs, and I'm running
> on the assumption you guys are familiar with setting up Samba to work
> as a file server with a Windows machine and might have an all around
> idea as to where to actually start looking for information.

If you need someone to set it up for you, you'd better look for a
contractor.

Several people have already pointed you to the documentation.

I forward the remainder of your mail untrimmed to d-u@d.o

Cheers,

Johannes

> The problem is:  No matter how much I diddle with Samba, as per all
> the information {which appears to be wrong or waaaaay out of date -
> one article was dated 1947! {Ok, that's an exxageration}} I can find,
> I can't actually log in!
> 
> 
> 
> I see the server on the Windows PCs.  I can see the Windows PCs on
> the linux server.  I have full design access to the Windows PCs as
> per the perimeters we set up on them from the Linux machine.  But
> when we try to access the Linux server, it sez, "Login and password."
> We enter a login and password.  The login field changes to
> "ComputerName\DebianAccountName" and the login fails pretty
> consistently.  All the documents I can find make references to
> commands to test the system remotely, but none of those commands,
> which are for Windows {so they claim} don't do anything except
> generate errors in CMD {basically, 'Bad Command or File Name'}.
> 
> 
> 
> It might not be Samba.  You saw the file ...  Mebbe it is, maybe it's
> not.  If it's so simple, then it could be explained to me in a
> paragraph or two.
> 
> 
> 
> If the file is, as far as you can tell, correct, then it might be
> something in Windows.  If it's that, then point me in the right
> direction.  If it's in the configuration file, or you suspect it
> might be, point me in the direction with a brief explaination of why.