FIX #2 - Network Shares

Only my WDTV Live on 1.06.34. Everything else on the network is still a member of the STRAYLIGHT workgroup.

This is where the confusion is about what I did and what you have said in many posts.

I ONLY changed the name of WORKGROUP on my PC.

Workgroup is still just WORKGROUP on the WDTV unit.

Again. ALL settings in WDTV are as they have always been.

ALL router settings have stayed the same.

ONE change was made on my PC and that was the name change of WORKGROUP

Again. Not sure why it worked since the name is different but it has.

Today I am going to change the name back to default on my PC (WORKGROUP) and see if my network shares stay or dissapear again.

So I changed my PC’s Workgroup back to it’s default of WORKGROUP name and guess what 
 NO NETWORK SHARES !

As many have said, this should work since it matches my WDTV unit Workgroup name (WORKGROUP) but it doesn’t !

So changed it back (my PC) to WORKGROUP-PC and guess what 
 got my network shares back.

So how and why is unknown to me but I’ll take it since I can stream from my PC as I once used to.

I’m willing to bet it’s the units firmware gone haywire or something. I don’t care really since it works.

There is no confusion about what you did or why it works but about why it does not work if you go back to using WORKGROUP. As we’ve established, this firmware apparently doesn’t need all devices to be in the same workgroup any more, however there’s no reason for it not to work when all belong WORKGROUP. Of course you should stay on what works for you but the whole situation doesn’t make it any easier to find what’s causing this. I’d really like to see anyone else chiming in solving the problem like you have.

WDTV619 wrote:

So I changed my PC’s Workgroup back to it’s default of WORKGROUP name and guess what 
 NO NETWORK SHARES !

As many have said, this should work since it matches my WDTV unit Workgroup name (WORKGROUP) but it doesn’t !

So changed it back (my PC) to WORKGROUP-PC and guess what 
 got my network shares back.

 

So how and why is unknown to me but I’ll take it since I can stream from my PC as I once used to.

I’m willing to bet it’s the units firmware gone haywire or something. I don’t care really since it works.

If you’re willing to experiment - how about if you rename it from WORKGROUP-PC to something like TESTGROUP, anything as long as it’s different from what your WD TV is using?

As far as I can recall, the Live / Live+ didn’t have a workgroup limitation like the SMP and Hub have – it’d work on any workgroup.

Changing your PC’s workgroup name is going to cause your PC to be the master browser of it’s own workgroup (WORKGROUP-PC), while some other device on the original workgroup (WORKGROUP) will become the master browser of that workgroup.

The implication is that your PC doesn’t play master browser correctly when it’s the master of a larger workgroup, but works OK when it’s in a standalone workgroup.

TonyPh12345 wrote:

As far as I can recall, the Live / Live+ didn’t have a workgroup limitation like the SMP and Hub have – it’d work on any workgroup.

That was my impression until some people mentioned it here and since WD also backported some weird stuff with the SMP I thought it was possible so I switched after updateding. As it turns out my network troubles were due to my router so now that it’s fixed being in any other workgroup works as well.

What was your issue with your router ?

I have said before that this network issue did in fact come about after installing a new router. I just didn’t think it was the issue since network connection was checking out on the WDTV (check network connection option) and that I could also see my WDTV and the USB drive hooked up to it, from my Windows machine through Network Neighborhood.

I went from a WRT120N to an EA3500

I just dont get how the PC can communicate to the WDTV with Workgroup names macthcing but not the other way around. Then how it communicates both ways with 2 different names 
 ? Boggles my mind  hahaha

linksys huh ?

I had constant problems with the E3000 until I installed DD-wrt

but DD-wrt is a mess of it’s own

definetely not for everybody

Well, workgroups are a pointless invention by Micros~1 that have no actual bearing on network connectivity. The problem with my router was that with frequently changing LIVEs and firmwares on the network and assigning IPs via DHCP, it apparently got confused which device had which IP (probably due to lease times). So I deleted all devices from the router’s network list, added them one by one and set the router to always assign the same IP to the same device. Since then I had no trouble accessing network shares no matter the workgroup.

I am running firmware version 1.06.41_V on a WDBAAP0000NBK box. (B good if  yo all left this info)


This may be relevant, about 3 weeks ago I installed this FV (no choice) and could not see any of my network shares.  Then after a few days I noticed that I was able to access all my folders / files via the media server , I do not remember looking there for them before but they all worked well.

A week passed by and I read a post here that  suggested executing the “Clear Login for Network Share” which I did and a few hours later my network shares were back.  This was all OK until a power cut the other day  and now I am left with accessing my files via the media server again (which is not a big issue and if it is I don’t know what it is yet), by the way I have tried " Clear Login 
" but to no good.

One thing I want to ask you all is if you are able to access all your shares via the media server?

I think micorsorft runs this app by default, but I may have turned it on yonks ago.


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Firmware version 1.06.41_V on a WDBAAP0000NBK box.

must get it right 1st time

For me, I was never able to get past the Netwok Shares icon. I could not choose my PC (would not ‘move over’) and I did try and see if Media Server worked but again the same issue. Could not ‘move over’ to a selection.

So I ws left without any type of networking.

Have you tried the method I talk abot in here ? Im curious for those who can not acess their shared folders find this a fix like I have.

WOW, Great news my Network shares is also working!!!

In short the answer to your question is no, but


WDTV619 wrote> xxxxxxxx 

Have you tried the method I talk about in here ? Im curious for those who can not access their shared folders find this a fix like I have.


 I went off to my PC to change the workgroup as you suggested, then remembered something about setup files for the WD and thought they were on my laptop, I opened it up, but could not find the relevant files.  So, being a little confused as usual, I went to the WD box and looked at my Network Settings again.  I thought to myself, even though my WD box never changes its IP, since its always been on automatic, what would happen if I changed it to manual?

Well, the first thing was that the radio stopped playing and I thought what the **** now, not another WD special (as one has to now) so off I went to the radio and amazingly got it going, then thought where was I, I know trying to get to my Network shares.  So, I went to the Network Shares and all my shares came up including some I did not realise I had shared.  Tried some audio, photo and not video yet but what I did try worked.

I am totally gob smacked, where did that come from just changing from Automatic to Manual, no changes in the values offered, a simple change Automatic to Manual and press OK.

Anybody dare to explain?

sounds like a problem already described above with the DHCP lease

set the IP to static, means it’s not using DHCP anymore