Recently I've been blighted by a minor network glitch that meant I couldn't file share from my Windows 7 laptop. I was convinced it was something to do with Windows Firewall, ESET NOD32 or even the ZyXel router. I downloaded the excellent Wireshark and used it to analyse the packets; lots of outgoing requests but nothing back from my server (miata). I could ping and transfer HTTP packets, but no file sharing.

Wireshark set up

It turns out that Windows 7 has several file sharing modes but two are relevant here: 'Homegroup' and 'Work'. I had it setup in Homegroup and I had to change it to work. The file sharing mode is determined by the connection type, which meant changing my wireless LAN connection from 'Home' to 'Work', as described here.

Wireshark result

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wireshark-result.jpg293.54 KB
wireshark-settings.jpg53.69 KB