I seem to have run into a new and unusual problem with Windows 2000. I have a small home network, two workstations and one “server” (and I use the term server in its broadest possible sense). I’m connected to the internet via an Efficient Networks ADSL modem and a Linksys four port router. The server is running Windows 2000 Server, workstation #1 runs Windows ME and is doing fine while workstation #2 runs Windows 2000 Professional and, to put it bluntly, sucks rocks.
It’s a brand new machine, which I had to send back the first time because of a DOA motherboard. It works brilliantly as long as I’m not trying to browse the local network/intranet. On the Internet or doing purely local tasks, there’s nary a problem. But as soon as I attempt to try to access the shares located on the server, or even the other workstation I run into trouble. I can browse the first level of directories with no problem, but as the path gets deeper into the hierarchy, it starts to stall out and I am completely unable to copy or accesses any of the actual files.
I usually get the error message of “Specified network name is no longer available,” when I try to access a folder on the server or workstation #1 and the error message “Cannot copy/move/save (file x): Error performing inpage operation.”
I don’t think it’s something with the server, however I could be wrong. Things were working fine when it was just the server and workstation #1 (prior to the arrival of the new computer that was running Windows 2000 Professional). The new system has a micro AT motherboard and, while searching the archives for messages that might bear upon my problem I found a post saying that problems could arise when the NIC was placed in the slot right next to the video AGP slot because of interupt conflicts. I haven’t done that, but it still seems as though my video card and NIC are sharing an interupt… along with my sound card and two USB Host Controllers. This may well be causing untold amounts of problems, but I can’t find a way to change the IRQs, since Windows stubbornly refuses to acknowledge there’s a problem. It blithely insists there are “No Conflicts”.
I’ve tried to reserve the slot that contains the NIC for a unique IRQ (5), and during the boot sequence it shows that the NIC is actually using IRQ 5. As soon as Win 2000 gets involved, however, things seem to go right to hell. It assigns the NIC IRQ 9, along with everything else.
Does anyone have any idea what my problem might be and how I can correct it?
Workstation #2 Hardware
AMD 1.2 Ghz Athalon
Asus A7VI-VM Motherboard(Audio and Video onboard)
Netgear FA310TX NIC
Windows 2000 Professional