WINS VLANS help!

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Hi all..

I have currently picked up responsiblity for sorting out a bit of a messy situation on a remote site...

Everything is working OK except there is an application in use which seems to require the use of NETBIOS to accumulate computer names. However this site has 3 VLAN's. Also the managers want to be able to see all the computers in My Network Places etc...

Now I have read through an absolute raft of documentation to try and mentally prepare myself for this so I do not walk in dazzled... and I think I may have sussed it but I am looking for some advice on the following:

The My Network Places computer listing is generated by the computer browser service on one elected machine in the LAN segment by broadcasting. This would make sense as at the moment a PC in each VLAN can only see other PC's in its own VLAN. Then the PDC of the domain is maintains a Domain Browser List.

I am not sure how this list is compiled or the ports needed to open..

Does the PDC collect each of the segments browser lists from the actual elected workstations and then give them back the completed list so every browser list is correct? (If so what ports are used)

Or does the PDC communicate with the WINS server to receive all registrations? (Again what ports are used)

If I double click on a PC in My Network Places to access it, it then uses the WINS service to resolve that name to an IP address (???)

If I go Start, Run and type in a UNC path such as \\computername it will use WINS to resolve this? Or will it try WINS then try DNS using connection suffixes or what? and what if I do \\FQDN-computername... DNS only?

From what I have read using WINS across VLAN's requires me to open port 137 UDP for name registrations (If the WINS server is in another VLAN)?

(I am also aware that WINS replication occurs on another set of ports but the two WINS servers in question are in the same segment so this is not an issue)..

Sorry if thats really complicated I just need to know more about WINS which is really not covered much in any current certification tracks due to its legacy nature (However everyone still seems to be using it!)

Also what happens when DNS is set to use the WINS option?

All I am trying to do is the following... Show all computers in My Network Places (Without allowing broadcasts across VLANs) and allow them to be reachable from within My Network Places. I also need to know what ports need to be opened to allow the necessary communication to occur! And how a PC decides to use DNS or WINS?!

 

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Do you have a server in each VLAN configured as a master browser?

If not, there's a registry key you can add to force one of them to be a master browser - I'll see if I can dig it out and hope that helps

EDIT:

LOL - I suppose you could use browstat to check whether there's a master browser on each VLAN first before diving in changing registry keys!

EDIT 2:

OK - if you've run browstat and found that there isn't a server on each VLAN acting as the master browser, change this reg key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Browser\Parameters
IsDomainMaster

It will be set to False - change it to True for the server you choose as the MB

It might take a while for clients to start noticing it - bounce them or stop and start the workstation service on each to confirm its worked

HTH

 

I haven't got time to attempt to answer all your questions as off to the pub but here is a link which gives some useful information as to how WINS works and in what order things happen and the various node types.

Also look into the LMHOSTS file and what it does as that may be the right way to go.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/119493