Windows 10: How I Fixed My Missing Network & Homegroup Computers

I tried this and no go for me, wanted to set the services back to default, I know some were already set to automatic some were not. should of taken notes I guess.

giving up on the homegroup, going to try regular networking. Thanks Bill! ;-)

[/QUOTE]

 

This method worked for me. Was able to see all my computers under "network" in windows explorer. I followed the steps to the letter.

Many Thanks

 

I too had this and since I had hard drive backups, I was able to confirm that the Microsoft culumative update for Windows 10 was the key issue for some computers disappearing in a local home network. (Observed that the computers missing in one computer were seen by other computers and I could get to various drives, etc... So it is more a display item for a local computer not seeing itself.

A general observation for Microsoft Techs who might be viewing this thread. 1) Each time I would add/modify various users and their permission, the local computer would be added to the network list. When I closed the file explorer and reopened it, the local computer would disappear. Hope it helps to fix this rather frustrating addition to Windows 10 update.

In any event, I went through the above repair and it now works.

 

We have a Laptop and a Desktop PC. Desktop PC has a shared folder which I need to access frequently from Laptop. Have always shared that folder on the Desktop using File Explorer, no password settings.

Upgraded my old Laptop and the Desktop PC from 7 to 10 last summer, no problems networking via File Explorer after we got the settings correct and got used to it.

Replaced old laptop this winter with a new laptop, came with Windows 10 Home 64-bit installed, and network sharing has been difficult at best ever since and more often impossible.

Laptop is currently running Windows 10 Home 64-bit v1607, OS build 14393.1198. Avira Connect free antivirus.
Desktop is currently running Windows 10 Pro v1703, OS build 15063.296. Avast free antivirus.

Have checked sharing settings on both computers, tried disabling firewalls and antivirus. No luck. Have tried numerous solutions posted online, no real luck despite occasional bouts of connectivity.

For a while (after much tweaking) laptop could access the office desktop with password, which worked okay for a week or two. Then after another update Desktop disappeared entirely again from Laptop's File Explorer.

Now after following the solution posted in this post and others, I can occasionally have access the way I intended (via File Explorer, no password) but as near as can figure:
-Desktop can always see Laptop in File Explorer (access is by password - no shared folders on Laptop)
-Laptop can only see Desktop in File Explorer if Desktop is re/started after Laptop is already on.
-If either computer goes to sleep, when either or both is woken up, Laptop will no longer be able to see Desktop in File Explorer

Any suggestions for why this might be and how I might fix it?

I am not particularly technically minded so maybe I've missed something easy. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Sevices control panel is under Computer Management.
To get there.....
rt.clk ... START
click.....Compute Management
bottom of the box...
Services and Applications

 

Thanks for this....worked for me. Had one laptop on the network that homegroup worked fine on but it couldn't see the other computers in network inside file explorer...all is good now.

 

I’m updating this thread at this late stage because I’m fairly sure what the cause of the issue is.
My problem was related in that I wished to disable HomeGroup to stop it appearing in the Explorer window, and for a little extra security. (I've never used it and don't plan to, preferring the standard Networking approach)

Therefore I DISABLED the following services to remove HomeGroup
HomeGroup Listener and HomeGroup Provider – these were originally set to Automatic – this is important!


However doing that meant that the computer that I was currently using was invisible, even to itself. IE, open explorer and go to Network and the local PC was missing – no other systems on the network could see it either, although it could see all the other systems.

I searched the web for hours and it was this thread that provided the solution in a roundabout way – thank you @KRL

Using your list of services, I discovered that Function Discovery Resource Publication was set to Manual (and
that’s the critical bit!) – it was running when HomeGroup Provider was running, but when I disabled HomeGroup Provider, then Function Discovery Resource Publication did not run.

THAT prevented me from seeing the particular PC in the Network – starting Function Discovery Resource Publication manually brought it back into view on all the PCs on the Network.

Looking at the Service Properties, HomeGroup Provider is dependent on Function Discovery Resource Publication so my theory is that with HomeGroup Provider set to Automatic, this forces Function Discovery Resource Publication to start thus allowing the PC to be seen

I then looked at all my other PCs and found that Function Discovery Resource Publication is set as AUTO on all of them – and they all work correctly. How this PC got set to Manual I don’t know but I have to assume that an update did it somewhere, sometime. The PC in question started life on Win 7, then Win 10, then Anniversary Update, now Creators Update. It's only just recently that I decided to remove HomeGroup.

So the solution to MY problem is:

Leave all services as they are except:

HomeGroup Listener – DISABLED This removes HomeGroup from Explorer
HomeGroup Provider – DISABLED This removes HomeGroup from Explorer
Function Discovery Resource Publication set to AUTOMATIC Ensures Networking always starts.

None of the other services in KRL's list had any bearing on the matter, hence my setting them back to how I first found them.

 

Thanks for the tip, was quite annoyed with not having the server available via the Network tab.

 

this totally worked, fixed it for me! YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY w/ feature update 1709

 

So, I tried this (and the bit about disabling HomeGroup Provider, etc.), but nothing worked. First, let me say that this started out a year and a half ago, but with just my NAS. I don't have a "HomeGroup", and really would rather not set one up. Up until a year and a half ago, my NAS was working fine, but then I updated firmware, and I couldn't access it through Network Map.

I searched forever and did the bit with cmd prompt that disables SMBv2 and reestablishes SMBv1. That worked. Yesterday, I woke to find that my NAS was visible on my Network Map...only in "Other Devices". It is typically in Other Devices AND in Network (along with my computer and any other computer that is on the network). I figured I'd just try what worked last time, but it didn't. It made it worse. Now, the Network Map doesn't show up at all. I can go into my router admin page, find IP addresses and ping them, but I can't do a "run \\MYCOMPUTER" and have that show up...or the NAS. It asks me to check spelling, and I am sure I have them spelled correctly.

I've also tried changing sharing options on all network profiles, but the weird deal is that the "Turn on File and Printer Sharing" ALWAYS (in either profile) reverts to "Turn OFF FIle and Printer Sharing". I change it as Admin, and it still does it. At one point I tried a bunch of stuff, and it got my Network Map up and running, and I was able to use the "run \\NASname" command and access my files. Instead of leaving well enough alone, I decided to try the original method again to get the NAS to show up, and then I lost the entire Network Map again and spent 12 hours straight yesterday trying to get this working.

I've tried changing adapters to disable IPv6 and make IPv4 to do NetBIOS over TCP/IP. Didn't work. Not sure, but my sharing options might be corrupted since I can't turn ON "File and Printer Sharing".

Any suggestions at this point would be awesome.

 

I am on the release preview so I received the initial 1803 release around 1st April worked for me without any major issues but MS held it back from general release due to a blocking bug.

I received the latest version Saturday so would expect either tomorrow or a week tomorrow for general release. This is of course assuming that the build 17134.1 is the actual release version.

 

None of the "cures" mentioned have worked for me.

I have no homegroups.

Purely a network problem for me, where computers are not visible in the network pane, but network pc shortcuts i have on the desktop function easily.

Seems to happen after every Win10 update so far. Sometimes clears up, but recurrs with the next update.

Resetting Winsock just made the host pc disappear from the network pane tonight.

 

Usually turning on SMB1 on all PCs is a cure, did you try that?

 

Well, that was an improvement. Now one of the PCs can see itself and the other, but the other can only see itself.

Before they were both "blind".

 

Many thanks to Bree.

Persisting in trying for all visible I unticked " Turn on automatic setup of network connected devices", on my two WinTen PCs, thinking to somehow reset the Advanced Sharing Settings. For whatever reason though, (Three PCs here ATM, two WinTens and a WinSeven) all PCs can, for the moment, see each other in the Network pane since that change.

Hopefully that will survive the next Update.