*URGENT* PC Tech Help

[Owenski]

Fed up now, tried for a while in vain to gain access to a network drive someone please tell me what to do to fix the problem.

My PC at work packed in this morning so Im using the machine of someone who is on holiday. The thing is, if I log on to this machine in My Computer viewing Networks Drive I am only able to view Z:Arp-Server\users but no other Network Drives. There should be 2 others, but its only P:Arp-Server which Im interested in.
If I log in on this machine using someone elses log in (still not the account of the guy who is away). I can then see all the drives and acess them totally fine.
We're both user accounts with Admin clearance but why is it that I cant see these netwrok drives, its sending me nuts! PLEASE HELP!

If it helps you to know, were running XP and the server is a seperate tower somewhere in the loft.

[Owenski]

Urgent - hence bump!

[Kinvig]

Sounds like you need to map a network drive from windows explorer for that user.

Open Windows Explorer then Tools -> Map Network Drive.

[Owenski]

Yup, I've opened that and get a window with 2 drop down boxes.
In the first drop down loads of drive letters to allocate and then I hit browse, browse doesnt show the server it just shows all the other computers which are connected to it.

[SoulKiss]

instead of relying on the browser, try putting

\\SERVERNAME

into the path in the file-explorer (not internet explorer) window

[fizzwheel]

Or go to a command prompt and use the "NET USE" command to map the drive for you...

i.e if you know the name of the server and the name of the share you want to map to... then for example...

NET USE Z: \\server1\share1

I hate messing about with the GUI in windows for this stuff, its much easier to do it via the command prompt.

[Owenski]

YEEEYYYY :)
sorted SK cheers, thats the thing I didnt know you could do.

Good old microsoft point and click training strikes again.

Cheers mate.

[Owenski]

bugger, means i have to work now... didnt think that through :(

[Owenski]

Actually while, I have peoples attention maybe you can give some suggestions as to why my normal PC has died.

Worked fine on Friday no problems crashing etc. Come to turning it on today and it starts its normal boot up but goes into the "start windows normally/safe mode/last known working..." No matter which option is then selected it gets part way though loading the next screen (windows XP logo with loading bar) then flashes blue background with white letters (very bios looking) but too fast to see any of the info it displays. It then restarts its self and goes through the whole thing again.. and again... and again..

Any ideas?

[SoulKiss]

Easiest would be a rebuild...

If the other boot options are not working then you could take forever.

Looks like a corrupt driver to me

[Owenski]

Assuming the guy who set up the PC's here made a drive image of his original set up, would that be an option or are we talking new parts? And what is likely to have caused it?

[SoulKiss]

Assuming the guy who set up the PC's here made a drive image of his original set up, would that be an option or are we talking new parts? And what is likely to have caused it?

Its just a corrupt install - an image would fix, I dont think its going to be hardware related.

The fact you get the boot screen shows that the PSU is ok, that it passed the POST memory check, and can read the disk.

*COULD* be failing Hard Disk.

My thoughts would be to get a new HD, re-install XP, then you can try and get any data off the curretn, suspect drive.

[phi-dan]

If you want to go down the diagnostic route, the crash dump files will be in C:\Windows\Minidump and can be read by the Debugging Tools for Windows (free download from MS) and that will tell you the driver / system file that caused the crash. or as SK said, it could the hard disk on the way out. Depends how much time you have to work on it, and if you have an IT guy to call on locally.