PC not showing on network - not properly

Frankiemac · 10 Feb 2025 at 22:58

Bit complicated this... I have recently built a pc and installed windows 10. Its connected to the network and the media library shows up on the other pcs / lappies on the network and on my Smart TV, including the local pc. However the pc does not show up in the Computers section Network page on my system, even locally, but I can see the other pcs and send files to their shared folders.

I have tried private share, public share followed online instructions using cmd but still nothing. The media library icon show up on the pc but nothing else

Frankiemac · 14 Feb 2025 at 01:10

Any ideas ?

!bluetonic! · 14 Feb 2025 at 08:42

The show computer on network option is disabled by default. Google windows 10 network discovery to enable it.

Frankiemac · 14 Feb 2025 at 09:58

is this the group policy thing and the services.msc ? I've done those already, and I just had to do that on a pc with a new windows 11 install on a friends pc ... 11 sucks.

I can't find anything else after spending hours trying tp sort it. That why I asked on here.

SpellowHouse · 14 Feb 2025 at 10:19

This has always been very poor with Windows.

Network Discovery has been switched off by default now, after a recent Microsoft update.

Thing is, that when you switch it back on it can take a little while to take effect.

Frankiemac · 14 Feb 2025 at 10:55

SpellowHouse said:
This has always been very poor with Windows.

Network Discovery has been switched off by default now, after a recent Microsoft update.

Thing is, that when you switch it back on it can take a little while to take effect.

This has been 3 weeks !! Windows 7 pc can see windows 10 pc on network etc ... seems to be an 11 issue but the microsoft script bot (ai) answers the same thing every time ignoring the actual issue on their community forums. I can access the windows 10 pc if I type in its name in file explorer, but it won't appear on network. On windows 10 lappy and pc I have had to trawl through loads of group policy stuff for it to even connect. Its beyond a joke.

melmac · 14 Feb 2025 at 12:34

Can you connect to the media library using it's IP address instead of it's hostname?

I am presuming that the media library has password protected shares?

Frankiemac · 14 Feb 2025 at 12:43

melmac said:
Can you connect to the media library using it's IP address instead of it's hostname?

I am presuming that the media library has password protected shares?

No password. How do I find media library ip address ? Thats all, working visible on all machines inc 11 and works from smart tv.

melmac · 14 Feb 2025 at 14:54

Frankiemac said:
No password. How do I find media library ip address ? Thats all, working visible on all machines inc 11 and works from smart tv.

Sorry, I read your post wrong. I thought you were trying to access a media library with this PC.

If other computers can access the PC in question and it's showing up on their PC's, then it's probably just a quirk with the File explorer. It's been buggy for years with no real logic to the way it sometimes chooses to display or not display network computers and devices. In the toolbar of file explorer on one of the other PC's type \\COMPUTERNAME\ (computername, been the name of the computer you are having a problem with) If it comes up, then your network is fine, it's just a bug with file explorer.

Frankiemac · 14 Feb 2025 at 16:55

yeah I can type it in and have saved a link, yet all the old systems work...microsoft utterly suck, need to beheld accountable by governments, not just beacasue of this. How mnay hours does this type of petty crap cause business. If it worked 20 years ago, why is it not working now.

SpellowHouse · 15 Feb 2025 at 10:20

Frankiemac said:
This has been 3 weeks !! Windows 7 pc can see windows 10 pc on network etc ... seems to be an 11 issue but the microsoft script bot (ai) answers the same thing every time ignoring the actual issue on their community forums. I can access the windows 10 pc if I type in its name in file explorer, but it won't appear on network. On windows 10 lappy and pc I have had to trawl through loads of group policy stuff for it to even connect. Its beyond a joke.

There is an inbuilt local name server in windows, if you type in a name that exists on the network, it will find it. The problem you have is that Discovery is not working. The name server is independent of Discovery, so you can have Discovery switched off and yet it will still find addresses that are located on other PC's.

But, yes, it should find it after a few reboots and a lot less time than three weeks.

I deliberately keep Discovery off so that it's not possible to see other PC's, but I know the address of the shared folders on them so I can access them by name. Printers, I used static IP's so there is no need to see them with Discovery. It's a more secure way of doing things.