Problem can't get two computers connected by a switch or bridge
Problem can't get two computers connected by a switch or bridge
I'm setting up a brand new PC right now. To move files from my old computer to this new one, I connected them using an ethernet cable and a small switch in the same room where both computers are already set up. That was easy. Both PCs have internet access, they connect to the same network area, and they use different IP addresses but work together well enough for normal tasks. I configured everything as usual on both machines. They can see two other big drives that belong to my old PC, but when I try to connect to those drives from my new PC, it doesn't find them. The drive that's connected to the switch is not part of this same network group. My router connects to a cable modem, and everything else hangs there too. My new PC can't reach my old one, and the old one can't see anything on the new PC either. Both computers have the exact same antivirus and anti-malware protection programs installed. I turned them off but nothing changed. The PCs are running Windows 10 Professional with all the latest updates on both sides. I tried turning off the router's power, restarting it, and turning it back on again—but no luck either. Even when I rebooted my own computers or restarted the switch, everything stayed stuck. When I opened the built-in network fix tool, it suggested that security software might be stopping the connection. After checking closely to make sure there wasn't a hidden cause, I even turned off my Windows firewall but the problem remained. Both PCs are using the same Microsoft account for signing in. I've been working on this problem for hours now. It feels like maybe my switch isn't working right, so I ordered a brand new one today. Is there something special about connecting two computers to the same small network bridge or hub that I'm missing? Thank you for your help!
Do you have network discovery on for both machines? Are you using "name/password" as connection method or are you letting windows decide (thingy)? Are both PC in the same workgroup? Alternately, if you can see the network attached storage from each machine, use it to transfer to and then from.
I can find my name and password for both PCs easily. What do you mean when you say "name/password"? Both computers are in a single group called WORKGROUP, so we can use network drives without needing special info. Would using the drive take much longer than just connecting normally?