Network problems, Linux Mint Mate and various editions of Windows. Solved

[Marie SWE]

Hello everybody
This is my first post, so I hope I've post it in the right section.
This will be a little longer intro, so you all get a little insight into my needs and knowledge or rather to my confusion I'm in now with Linux.
My english isn't the very best, but I hope you all will understand me anyway. I will cheat a little bit with a correction program if needed on some words.*hahaha*

I've been using microsoft products since my early teens (late 80's), but now when the last acceptable windows version has it's EOL (End Of Life) in 2020, Then it's Linux or Mac the only options. Mac would mean replacing all hardware so it was ruled out before the thought even had swished by me .. So Linux is the only choice i have.

I have installed Linux Mint Mate on one of my laptops (dual boot with win7) so i can learn linux .. So now after barely 10 days an around 20-25 hours, I find it a little bit overwhelming and it's a totally new world then microsoft.

So to my little problem or challenge that makes me create this thread are:
I have a medium sized microsoft based network at home with many different editions of windows. (Retro computers just because it's fun, work computers and two file servers) In OS it means: Win3.11, 98se, 2000, XP, Win7 and Server 2003-R2(offlineLan backup server) and 2008-R2(onlineLan)
I'm planning to have dual boot on some of them and only win on the retros and only Linux on some.

I have managed to get the Linux network function running so far that I have the right workgroup instead of the default "Workgroup" and I can reach the shared folders and files from my windows computers ... But the Linux computer can not reach the shared folders on the Win computers. My problem occurs when i click on a win computer on the network so comes a popup window and ask for username and password. Because I have OS from win3.11 I don't use password login on any of my computers shared folders, or on the offlineLan file-server.
Why I chosen Mint Mate to this... I do not want an OS to use more than 1/4 of the computer's hardware performance, and that the interface feels a little bit familiar to this transition from Win to Linux.

So my question is.... How can I get Linux to understand that there is no password login?

I thank you for all the answers in advance.
Have a nice day
//Marie

[Pierre]

Hi Marie,
you may become unstuck on this one, as most Linux Systems, if not all of them,
- will insist on using an password into both itself & into any network system, too.

this is part of the higher level of security, that most Linux systems, do have.

so, if your network is currently being seen, by the new LinuxMint system,
then can you change the current network, over to one that can / is using a Password ?.

[Marie SWE]

Hi Marie,
you may become unstuck on this one, as most Linux Systems, if not all of them,
- will insist on using an password into both itself & into any network system, too.

this is part of the higher level of security, that most Linux systems, do have.

so, if your network is currently being seen, by the new LinuxMint system,
then can you change the current network, over to one that can / is using a Password ?.

Hello

Okay.. so it's not possible to create an guest setting or manipulate some file to get around the problem?
I don't relay know it this writing moment if i can create user and password accounts on win 3.11.. win2000 and newer is NT based so that is no problem.. But I would like to have it open for easy access between all computers.
I do not like the idea of having to reorganize the entire retro network for Linux access.. So the easy way or perhaps the only way is to Isolate Linux for web browsing and still use Microsoft for networking and HDD and File backup to the server. But no file backup for linux then?

[Marie SWE]

as most Linux Systems, if not all of them,
- will insist on using an password into both itself & into any network system, too.

Now i reflected on your sentence..
But if Linux requires username and password both ways, how come i can access files in the Linux computer folders from my Windows XP computer without enter password or nothing.. If that is possible, it must be possible to browse my Linux computer into my windows computer without entering any password on a open shared folder.
If it possible one way, it's must be possible the other way too.

okay if it hadn't been possible to get into the Linux computers shared folder from my Windows computer without a password .. But now it's the opposite.
hahaha microsoft open shared folders is too secure for Linux to access.

[altair4]

Samba made a change a few versions ago in response to a security issue with Windows. It cannot access a "passwordless" windows guest share by default. You will always be prompted for credentials:

SMB-guest-share.png

In a way it now does what Windows itself has always done the only difference is that most Windows users never knew that Windows was passing credentials automatically and without being prompted - even if they were dummy credentials in the case of those users that did not have a uername and password to log into their machines.

Now you would think that you could pass "guest" as the username and "xxx' as the password but that doesn't seem to work from the file manager. If you can't or won't create a samba user on your Windows machines many Linux users have resorted to one of these variations - and I will admit this makes no sense conceptually:

** Pass your Linux login user name and password.
** Pass your Linux login user name and it's samba password. You create the samba password for your user this way:

Code: Select all

sudo smbpasswd -a your-user-name

An alternative to this is to use a CIFS mount like these: On Demand CIFS Mounting of Shares

With a CIFS mount you can pass the username of "guest" automatically.

[Marie SWE]

Samba made a change a few versions ago in response to a security issue with Windows. It cannot access a "passwordless" windows guest share by default. You will always be prompted for credentials: SMB-guest-share.png
In a way it now does what Windows itself has always done the only difference is that most Windows users never knew that Windows was passing credentials automatically and without being prompted - even if they were dummy credentials in the case of those users that did not have a uername and password to log into their machines.

Now you would think that you could pass "guest" as the username and "xxx' as the password but that doesn't seem to work from the file manager. If you can't or won't create a samba user on your Windows machines many Linux users have resorted to one of these variations - and I will admit this makes no sense conceptually:

** Pass your Linux login user name and password.
** Pass your Linux login user name and it's samba password. You create the samba password for your user this way:

Code: Select all

sudo smbpasswd -a your-user-name

An alternative to this is to use a CIFS mount like these: On Demand CIFS Mounting of Shares

With a CIFS mount you can pass the username of "guest" automatically.

Hello and tanks for your answer.
So theoreticly its possible to install an older version of samba to get access(not recommended in security perspective i know) but in theory fully possible.

okay.. I'm going to test your code little later to night and check out your link..

[Marie SWE]

The problem is solved.
The fault was a crashed samba file and a small code string that allowed me to use the computer's own username and password as a guest access to windows computers.