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I have a desktop computer running Windows XP and a laptop on Windows 7. I am also sharing my internet connection between the two by means of a wireless router. This wireless router is connected to the desktop by means of a USB (since my desktop does not have a wireless capability, yeah I know its an old one :) ). My laptop connects to this router through Wi-Fi.

I would like to turn on windows file sharing between my desktop and my laptop. Since I am a weakling in networking, any help to solve my issues would be well appreciated.

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migrated from stackoverflow.com Apr 14 '11 at 17:05

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2 Answers

You can simply create a workgroup for the clients to join:


Restart both computers for the changes to take effect, then you should be able to browse shared or public folders from each machine.

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Nope , i tried doing the same, by assigning both the computers to the same workgroup, but still i cant access my files and folders. what could be the reason ? –  Gagan Apr 14 '11 at 21:59
Is it giving you an error? Can you see the files/folders, but just not open them? –  soymedia Apr 15 '11 at 1:58
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Some routers don't give out a full/proper network over the USB connection.

For instance, the desktop may not even be present on the router's 'network' at all, if it sees the router as some sort of modem device (I've seen that happen with one router over it's USB connection)

Check and see if using an Ethernet connection from your desktop instead of a USB connection fixes the problem, ie. actually adds you to the network.

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