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takes long to display workgroup? 2

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G0ldeneye

G0ldeneye

IS-IT--Management
Dec 9, 2003
74
US
Does anyone know why it would take up to 30 seconds, sometimes almost a minute, just to display my workgroup?
Would it go quicker if I added everyone's computer to my hosts file. It seems like there should be an easier way to do this.

I'm running XP pro, and the rest of the cpus on the network are running 98SE, win2k Pro, and XP pro.

Thanks for your help in advance!
 
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1. Make sure each pc has a static ip.
2. Create an lmhosts file.
3. Make sure NetBIOS over TCP/IP is enabled on each PC.

Matt J.

P.S. Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.
 
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1. Open up regedit.
2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace.
3. Find a key named {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}.
4. Right click on it and delete it.
5. Restart





 
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Thanks bcastner! Would you mind telling me what that did? Thanks again.
 
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By default XP will search for remote Scheduled Tasks and Remote Printers on every browse.

It is attempting to see if a Scheduled Task has been made that it needs to respond to.

This adds 10-30 seconds on many Workgroups. The registry change says: "You can search for print jobs (by the way, you can remove that too if you like) but do not see if a task has been scheduled before displaying the Workgroup Computers."

This was for a while a Service Pack fix that slipped through the cracks.
 
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bcastner, do you know why it would start being slow again? I checked to see if the two reg keys were back, but they weren't. Any ideas anyone?
 
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Before you made the change, was it ALWAYS slow, or just some days yes, some days no?

Matt J.

P.S. Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.
 
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right before i started this thread, i was using windows 2000 pro and it was working perfect, then i switched to xp pro and it started delaying, until i deleted the two reg keys bcastner supplied. a week later and its back to sloooo >:-(
 
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Okay, did you try my original suggestion? Also, I would set the computer browser service to disabled on each computer except one, it should alleviate browser wars.

Matt J.

P.S. Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.
 
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all of our cpus here are statically assigned, starting at 192.168.4.100. DHCP is enabled and starts assigning IPs at 192.168.4.50 - .99.

about the lmhosts file, I do have one and the only entry it has in it is our exchange server which is on a different subnet (192.168.10.x) via vpn.

about netbios over TCP/IP... the xp cpus have the default setting, I'm not sure about the win2k and 98 cpus though.

how would i disable a cpu's browser service? I looked in services, but didn't see anything obvious. Thanks for your help Matt.


 
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FYI

we have approx. 35 cpus in one workgroup and use a watchguard firebox as our firewall/vpn gateway (works great I might add). 5 xp pro, 6 win2k pro, and about 24 98SEs. The 98's will soon be win2k in a couple months hopefully.

I am also thinking of creating separate workgroups (i.e.: Finance, Sales, Office, Shipping, Parts). would this be wise in a 35 cpu workgroup?
 
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"about netbios over TCP/IP... the xp cpus have the default setting"

Comment: the default setting is disabled. Enable it under the WINS tab under TCP/IP Properties, Advanced.

"The 98's will soon be win2k in a couple months hopefully."

Better hurry, as Retail and OEM sales of Win2k OEM end at the end of next month. Note that your Win2k and XP clients will only accept 10 network connections, unlike Win98, so keep your "Server" computers Win98.

LMHOSTS is not a bad idea if you want to persist in this Workgroup setting. (I would have moved to a real server model previously). Without a true Server you cannot do WINS, or local DNS, but LMHOSTS can be quite effective. See this odd workaround in a Domain setting, for example:
 
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"Better hurry, as Retail and OEM sales of Win2k OEM end at the end of next month. Note that your Win2k and XP clients will only accept 10 network connections, unlike Win98, so keep your "Server" computers Win98."

-when you say 10 network connections, do you mean simultaneously? there's no one computer here acting as any kind of server so will I still have a problem afte they're all 2k native?
 
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Actually, 2000 communicates more effectively than 98, though it is still preferred you have a 2000/2003 server running dns. You only need one computer running the "computer browser" service, it doesn't harm anything to disable it. And I didn't say this was a browser war, but disabling the service will reduce the amount of chit chat on the network.

In services, look for computer browser. You might leave it set to automatic on all but two computers, so you have a backup browser.

Matt J.

P.S. Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.
 
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"You only need one computer running the "computer browser" service, it doesn't harm anything to disable it."

This is completely false.
I cannot believe anyone would seriously make this claim in a professional forum.

And it has Zero, nothing, zilch, to do with the problem that started this thread.
 
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The computers listed in the Network Neighborhood comes from the Browser-list maintained by the computer being Master Browser. A computer can become Master Browser through an election where the computer with the highest prioirty is elected.

There are different roles for computers participating in a Microsoft Network :
Non-Browser: Cannot participate in the election or maintain a Browser-list. Reports to the Master Browser with 12 min. intervals, and presumed dead by the Master Browser if it hasn't reported in 3 intervals.
Potential Browser: Able to be Master Browser if elected and can be chosen as Backup Browser by the Master Browser. Reports back like the Non-Browser and if the Master Browser disappears it can start an election.
Backup Browser: Elected by the Master Browser to mirror the Browser-list. Every 15 min. the Backup Browser requests an updated Browser-List from the Master Browser. There is a Backup browser elected for every 32 computer.
Master Browser: Responsible for maintaining the Browser-list by adding and removing computers for a single subnet.
Domain Master Browser: (Primary Domain Controller) Responsible to maintain the Browser-list in a Domain. It collects Browser-lists from all Master Browsers and distributes the entire Browser-list to all Master Browsers in the domain.
A computer's priority in the election depends on the operating system:
Windows For Workgroups or Windows 9x : 0x01000000
Windows 2000, NT4, XP Prof. : 0x10000000
Windows 2000, NT4 Srv. : 0x20000000
A computer's priority in the election depends on the configuration:
Primary Domain Controller(PDC) : 0x00000080
WINS System : 0x00000020
IsDomainMaster = Yes : 0x00000008
Running Master Browser: 0x00000004
MaintainServerList = Yes : 0x00000002
Running Backup Browser: 0x00000001
Note if a computer is frequently turned On/Off or having few resources available(Mobile Computer), then one should configure it as Non-Browser so it won't start unnecessary elections.

Note if having a LAN where one computer is configured to belong on a different subnet than the default or if the computer for some other reason cannot see the current master browser (Usually the Primary Domain Controller). Then this computer will constantly issue Master Browser election, because it cannot find a Master Browser. This can lead to a blank Browser-list for all the computers in the LAN.

Note if a router is used to connect two LANs and it is configured wrong, then the two LANs will affect each other in the Master Browser election. This can lead to a blank Browser-list for all computers in both LANs.

One can control how a computer participate in the Master Browser election, with these STRING registry keys :

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \System \CurrentControlSet \Services \Browser \Parameters]
MaintainServerList = "Auto" (Pro = "Auto", Server = "Yes", Off = "No")
IsDomainMaster = "True" (On = "True", Off = "False", Default = "False")

The MaintainServerList controls if it should participate in the election at all.
The IsDomainMaster gives the computer a higher priority in the election.

Note to discover/detect the current master browser on the network use the reskit tools browmon or browstat.

Note if the service Computer Browser is disabled then the computer will not participate in the election. Setting MaintainServerList = No will keep the Browser service from starting, any attempt will give the following error:

A service specific error occurred: 2550.

One can control how a computer participate in the Master Browser election, with these STRING registry keys :

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \System \CurrentControlSet \Services \Browser \Parameters]
MaintainServerList = "Auto" (Pro = "Auto", Server = "Yes", Off = "No")
IsDomainMaster = "True" (On = "True", Off = "False", Default = "False")

The MaintainServerList controls if it should participate in the election at all.
The IsDomainMaster gives the computer a higher priority in the election.

Note to discover/detect the current master browser on the network use the reskit tools browmon or browstat.

Note if the service Computer Browser is disabled then the computer will not participate in the election. Setting MaintainServerList = No will keep the Browser service from starting, any attempt will give the following error:

A service specific error occurred: 2550.

One can control how a computer participate in the Master Browser election, with these STRING registry keys :

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \System \CurrentControlSet \Services \Browser \Parameters]
MaintainServerList = "Auto" (Pro = "Auto", Server = "Yes", Off = "No")
IsDomainMaster = "True" (On = "True", Off = "False", Default = "False")

The MaintainServerList controls if it should participate in the election at all.
The IsDomainMaster gives the computer a higher priority in the election.

Note to discover/detect the current master browser on the network use the reskit tools browmon or browstat.

Note if the service Computer Browser is disabled then the computer will not participate in the election. Setting MaintainServerList = No will keep the Browser service from starting, any attempt will give the following error:

A service specific error occurred: 2550.

If the Computer Browser service is stopped on a Workgroup workstation, you can still access and share files, through direct UNC paths or persistant paths from previous sessions, but you will likely no longer be able to browse through Network Neighborhood.

References:
 
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"You only need one computer running the "computer browser" service, it doesn't harm anything to disable it."
This is completely false.
I cannot believe anyone would seriously make this claim in a professional forum."

Dude, relax... I'm not even reading that essay you copied and pasted from microsoft's site. The point I was trying to make was that if you leave two machines on with the browser service running, and leave them on all the time(sorry if I didn't point this out), then he can turn off the browser service on the other pcs, and browsing will still function. I can't say this will fix his problem, but it will eliminate a lot of traffic.

He really should have a server to control his communications, my suggestion would be to configure a linux box and turn on samba, have it run the show. He can use any old piece of equipment, and can buy a cheap box copy of suse professional.

Now, if you want to cut and paste a bunch of articles to try and disprove me, go right ahead. I have plenty of real world experience with the browser service and windows workstations, and as long as a couple of pcs exist to be the master and backup, then it doesn't hurt anything. I have found things to be slightly quicker when you don't have a hundred computers running communications services that aren't needed.

Goldeneye, your problem could be any number of things, from spyware, to virus, to missing patches, misconfigurations, to just needing to tune this os properly on each pc. My suggestion might quiet down a lot of election chit chat which could be slowing things down, or it may have nothing to do with your problem. You could always disable it on a few machines as a test to see if it causes any problems.

I'll not respond to any more postings that make statements like "I cannot believe anyone would seriously make this claim in a professional forum."


Matt J.

P.S. Please always take the time to backup any and all data before performing any actions suggested for ANY problem, regardless of how minor a change it might seem. Also test the backup to make sure it is intact.
 
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"Dude, relax... I'm not even reading that essay you copied and pasted from microsoft's site."

And your reference from a Microsoft site is? I in fact did not, but if I had, your point is that this is a failure on my part to answer the question?

Perhaps you should read my post. Your advice is that the questioner should abandon Windows, run Linux and SAMBA? This is an answer to the query?

quote:
"You only need one computer running the "computer browser" service, it doesn't harm anything to disable it."

My Claim is still:
"This is completely false.
I cannot believe anyone would seriously make this claim in a professional forum."

And note, I am not a "Dude".

Bill Castner
MS-MVP
Windows - Networking

 
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Matt J.,

Please permit me to apologize for the tenor of my remarks earlier.

I think I was rougher in my comments than was appropriate.

Bill
 
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