Netserver: A tale of woe

[Guest.Visitor]

I am trying to get a print share to work utilizing the Netserver utility and it just isn't working as it should. Through many iterations of experiments, we are now able to Ping the Netserver. BUT, it doesn't show up in the "Find Computer" utility. So, we won't be able to cconnect to the shared printer until it does. (Just specifying the \sysnameprintshare doesn't work either). All of the troubleshooting documents at IBM handle how to get a ping to occur, or how to get the share to happen, but totally skip over this scenario where the ping is successful yet the server doesn't show up in Find. Any ideas? Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

are you talking AS400 Netserver? Have you set it to your domain/workgroup? or are you at a remote store? If at a remote you may need wins running somewhere to carry the name.

[Guest.Visitor]

Are you using Operations Navigator to set up Netserver?

[Guest.Visitor]

Yes.

[Guest.Visitor]

<font color="red">are you talking AS400 Netserver?</font> Yes. <font color="red">Have you set it to your domain/workgroup?</font> Yes, to the domain. <font color="red">or are you at a remote store?</font> No. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Are there any errors in the system messages to do with as400 network neighbourhood? Silly question...please don't be offended... is it showing started in the operations navigater servers list? you might try using the ip address instead of the system name when mapping if it's still not showing up.

[Guest.Visitor]

<font color="red">Are there any errors in the system messages to do with as400 network neighbourhood?</font> No. If I look at the job log for QNPSERVD there are some messages, but I have been lead to believe that they are because we are not running IPX.<pre> Job 292492/QUSER/QNPSERVD started on 11/14/00 at 16:06:03 in subsystem QSYSWRK in QSYS. Job entered system on 11/14/00 at 16:06:03. Job 292492/QUSER/QNPSERVD submitted. Object changed. Object changed. The protocol required to support the specified address family is not available at this time. Host server communications error occurred on socket() - spx family. Host server communications error occurred on SSL_Init_Application().</pre> <font color="red">Silly question...please don't be offended... is it showing started in the operations navigater servers list?</font> Absolutely. <font color="red">you might try using the ip address instead of the system name when mapping if it's still not showing up. </font> Tried it, no change. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

You've got me stumped then. I have never had the problem yet. if I find anything I think will help I'll post. Best of luck. Sorry I couldn't help. Shawne

[Guest.Visitor]

Just wild guess... Is the *PUBLIC authority to the authorization list QPWFSERVER set to *EXCLUDE? This is the "fig leaf" approach to hiding the IFS from users in Network Neighborhood. I've read that setting the *PUBLIC authority to *EXCLUDE can cause some printing problems with NetServer. Chris

[Guest.Visitor]

<font color="red">Is the *PUBLIC authority to the authorization list QPWFSERVER set to *EXCLUDE?</font> Nope, it's at *Use. I have put a password on QUser even. The directions originally said that password could be *None, but other documents say that the guest profile MUST have a password to be used with print shares. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - Is your PC's workgroup (under Control Panel/Network/Identification) the same Netserver domain name? Are you using the "Q" name (Q + your system name)? Or just your system name? Are you using a Guest user profile? Or the PC user ID? Sorry for all these questions - there may be more later . . . Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

<font color="red">Is your PC's workgroup (under Control Panel/Network/Identification) the same Netserver domain name?</font> For the W98 PC, the workgroup name is not the same as the Netserver's Domain name. For the NT PC, they are the same. (Neither will find the netserver). <font color="red">Are you using the "Q" name (Q + your system name)? Or just your system name?</font> The Q name. <font color="red">Are you using a Guest user profile? Or the PC user ID?</font> Not sure what you mean by "using". The netserver configuration specifies QUser as the guest name. We all sign onto the network with other names. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - As promised - more questions! Do you have 'Client for Microsoft networks' loaded on the PC(s)? Do you have an entry for the AS/400 in the LMHOSTS file on the PC? (Should be in the Windows directory and look like '999.999.999 AS400 #PRE' where 999.999.999.999 is your /400 IP address, AS400 is your system name, and #PRE is a literal.) Good luck, Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

I appreciate it Steve. What you are asking here is necessary to get the Ping to work, which we have. The NT PC needed to have the LMHosts, the W98 did fine without the LMHosts. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - I understand . . . I'm starting from the PC and working toward the 400 . . . BTW - My W95 systems don't work without LMHOSTS . . . Do you have any sort of firewall (or ??) that restricts ports 8470 - 8479? Thanks, Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

No. The funny thing is, we had the print share working at one time - without the guest profile - but I wanted it to work with the guest profile. (Yes, I did try it again without the guest and it still didn't work). Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

I never could get mine to work without a guest profile - try this: Create a netserver usrprf, set the password = usrprf with no initial menu and initial program = *SIGNOFF, usrcls = *USER and see if you can FIND netserver from the PC. You ARE logging on to the PC with the Windows user name and password, right? Also, verify IP address in HOSTS and/or LMHOSTS . . . Beyond that, I'm running out of ideas . . . HTH, Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

Just for kicks, I did what you suggested. No change. What irks me is how the IBM Support Line document reads. "Once the AS/400 Netserver has been added to the DNS, WINS, or LMHOSTS, you can PING and find the AS/400 NetServer." They tie Ping and Find together, so something MUST be weird at my end. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill, Are you at O.S. v4r3? If so, I can share a number of gotchas which may be helpful to you.

[Guest.Visitor]

Unfortunately not. I am at V4R4, Cum 25200. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill, Just curious... Did you check your Netserver's Server Name using OPNav? It is not necessarily the same as what is defined in the green screen's CFGTCP. If you haven't, maybe you should try the Find Computer operation again and look for computer QSxxxxxxx where xxxxxxx is the AS/400's serial number.

[Guest.Visitor]

Ricardo, Thanks, yes we are looking for the correct name. As recommended by the on-line help documents, there is a message logged to QSysOpr's message queue that lists the NetServer name. And, that equals the Server name specified on the NetServer properties page. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill, Now I remember! I had this same problem when I migrated from Client Access for Win95/NT to Client Access Express. You cannot 'FIND' the Netserver unless you meet the following conditions: 1. You MUST CONNECT (via common user-id) to the AS/400 with a user-id that is EXACTLY THE SAME as your LAN log-in name. 2. Your connected AS/400 user-id's password MUST BE EXACTLY THE SAME as your LAN log-in name's password. 3. Your AS/400 must have an existing file/print share. This is as far as I can go. If you meet all the above conditions and still cannot see the netserver, then sorry, I am stumped!

[Guest.Visitor]

Ricardo, Is this documented anywhere? I don't disagree with what you are saying, I actually tend to believe it, BUT, this - to me - goes against being able to use a gues profile and everything I've read on the subject so far. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - I believe it is correct if you don't specify a Guest profile name in Netserver properties. However, if you DO specify a Guest profile name, this is not necessarily true. Also, if the PC user ID is also a valid AS/400 user ID, I believe the PC user ID takes precedence over the Guest profile. I connect all my users via a Guest profile on Netserver. BTW, are you using DNS, DHCP, or something else? HTH, Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

Steve, <font color="blue">I believe it is correct if you don't specify a Guest profile name in Netserver properties. However, if you DO specify a Guest profile name, this is not necessarily true. Also, if the PC user ID is also a valid AS/400 user ID, I believe the PC user ID takes precedence over the Guest profile. </font> Makes sense. <font color="blue">I connect all my users via a Guest profile on Netserver. </font> I have the opposite situation, if they sign onto both, they have the same profile ID. BUT, they are not guaranteed to have the same password (which is easily remedied). But the users I am performing trials on have the same User ID's and passwords and still no good. I did delete one user's ID to ensure it uses the guest ID, no change (I'm gonna wait a while in case the change needs to percolate down). <font color="blue">BTW, are you using DNS, DHCP, or something else?</font> Hmm, the NT server is running DHCP. I -think- the only DNS in the network is being supplied by our ISP. The crazy thing is, we had this working once. We could find the Netserver, but the print share didn't work. I don't know what changed in the week between when we could find it and when we couldn't. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - From a DOS command window, enter 'nbtstat -c' and check to see if your Netserver name is in the list. If so, enter 'nbtstat -a netservername' where netservername is your Netserver name. If not, enter 'nbtstat -A netserveripaddress' where netserveripaddress is the IP address of your system. Just another straw, Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

Steve, <font color="blue">From a DOS command window, enter 'nbtstat -c' and check to see if your Netserver name is in the list.</font> Yes, it's there three times. <font color="blue">If so, enter 'nbtstat -a netservername' where netservername is your Netserver name.</font> Ick, it replies with garbage: NetBIOS Remote Machine Name Table Name Type Status --------------------------------------------- +G±==±)÷±@@@@@@<40> UNIQUE Registered MAC Address = 00-00-00-00-00-00 Have we found a(the) problem? Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - I dunno . . . enter 'nbtstat -R' followed by 'nbtstat -a netservername' and see if that cleans up the 'ick'. If so, click start/find/computer and try to find your Netserver. Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

Nope, no change. If I were a guessing man, I would say that that name is the ebcdic representation of the server name. Does your -a screen list the name correctly? Is there a specific TCP service that needs to accompany the netserver start? (NFS, TFTP, etc.) Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

"Does your -a screen list the name correctly?" Yes, mine shows correctly. The document that I got the NBTSTAT command from talks about 'dirty' cache and says to use the -R option to reload cache. Are we talking about the NT box or the 98 box? (BTW - NBT (as in NBTSTAT) is NetBios over TCP/IP.) "Is there a specific TCP service that needs to accompany the netserver start? (NFS, TFTP, etc.)" None that I know of (if you discount STRTCPSVR *NETSRV). Are either of these machines laptops? Are they on the same network segment as the 400? Steve

[Guest.Visitor]

Bill - "Is there a specific TCP service that needs to accompany the netserver start? (NFS, TFTP, etc.)" Check QSYSOPR for Netserver initialization message. Also, the QSERVER subsystem must be running (verify that you have QZLSSERVER job running if Netserver is started). Steve+

[Guest.Visitor]

Steve, Yep, it's the same regardless of whether NT or 98, as/400 profile or guest. I just picked up the redbook for netserver. Most of it I have seen in other sources, but I am going to go back over the setup chapters and basically start from the beginning. Bill

[Guest.Visitor]

For closure: Looks like the problem was that I had specified Code Page 37 and that made it incompatible (for some reason). I found one document on the web which had an example set up with code page 0, which means "use te PC's default". Soon as I changed this, stopped and started again, it popped right up on the find computer screen. Note: this probably explains why I had garbage as the server name on one of the nbtstat command problem noted earlier. Now as I look at Chapter 2 of the NetServer Manual, there is this note on the use of the code page: "Under some cirumstances, particularly on non-US AS/400 systems, a code page value of 0 causes AS/400 NetServer to send invalid datagrams to the network browser service. The following problem has been encountered: Due to invalid datagrams, AS/400 NetServer does not register correctly with the browser service and, as a result, will not show up in Windows Network Neighborhood. To solve this problem, enter an appropriate code page ID. " Thanks everyone for your help. Bill