Windows 7 network problem

[Fear345]

My 4 pc's at home are all on windows 7 and been working fine for months networked but all of a sudden in the last few week i cannot actually access them, they do show on the network map but when i try to connect i get a invalid path error, also streaming to media center via xbox 360 has started to play up to, I have reset my router to default and reset that up plus i have reset my network settings and still no joy anyone have any other ideas ?

[tom999]

try a ping -t to each IP address and see if you get any lost packets? (ctrl+C to stop it)
Are they all on the same "homegroup"?
can you connect to them by using IP address rather than name?
is IPv6 enabled on all the NIC's?

[Fear345]

They are all on the same Homegroup and IPv6 is enabled haven't tried any of the other thing you mention yet.

[tombott]

Remove everything from your network.
Plug PC's back in one at a time, testing connectivity as you go.
You could have a dodgy NIC in one of your PC's thats screwing the network, or a shorted network cable.

[Fear345]

Yeah im going to try a new NIC in my pc tonight first and try that.

[l4wt0n]

try a ping -t to each IP address and see if you get any lost packets? (ctrl+C to stop it)
Are they all on the same "homegroup"?

Testing you can ping one machine from the other is definitely the best place to start.
If the machines are showing in your network map then you should be able to ping them from each other.

Have you checked through the advanced sharing options on each machine to make sure you have file and folder sharing and media streaming enabled and checked that you have configured HomeGroup sharing or password protected sharing depending on your preference for this. The invalid path error could be a permissions issue.

If none of the 4 machines can ping each other then you might want to look at your router settings.

[Fear345]

Tried pinging a ip on my network but it just times out.

[l4wt0n]

Do you have your router assign IP addresses via DHCP or do you manually assign them? either way it's worth checking that they are on the same subnet and have a matching subnet mask, if they are DHCP then they should be but worth checking.

The next step if you can't ping is to check Firewalls on both machines, try turning Windows firewall off and any 3rd party firewalls off and ping again. See if this helps.

[Fear345]

They are set via DHCP and are on the same subnet, I have just put my backup HDD in and still the same thing so it must be either my router or a hardware problem so next job is to check the cables and switches.

[Mickey]

Silly issue but are all the clocks on the pcs set to the same time. I couldn`t sync the kids pc upstairs as it wasnt on the correct time. strange that really

[Fear345]

Yeah i always check that as its the usual thing that stops MSN working.

[Mickey]

are all the passwords setup/spelled correctly
reset the main pc and alter the home network password
then log each pc in and alter the password again

[Mickey]

homegroup password

type that in search

make all pcs leave homehub
then rejoin

Spoiler:

[Fear345]

I have a switched behind the tv that goes to my 360 and my foxsat hdr i removed the switch and went straight into the 360 and everything is now working

[l4wt0n]

Did you manage to test with Windows Firewall (and any 3rd party fw) switched off?

If you can't ping one machines from the other and they are both on the same subnet it's possibly something blocking communication (e.g. firewall) or a routing issue (router settings).

[l4wt0n]

I have a switched behind the tv that goes to my 360 and my foxsat hdr i removed the switch and went straight into the 360 and everything is now working

Cool, well done mate.