I manage the network for very small municipality. Hardware consists of a Dell T100 server with Windows Server 2016 Essentials; 2 Windows 10 Pro PCs in the clerk's office that are used frequently plus another in the mayor's office that is seldom used; a D-Link "dumb" 16-port switch; and a TP-LINK wifi router (the model number escapes me right now). The PCs are connected via Ethernet, the wifi is only for the employees to use with their phones/tablets. No laptops have access.
I installed the system two years ago and it has run flawlessly. Last week I added a new user account for a part-time employee. Everything was fine until this morning when one of the part-time clerks (NOT the new user) was there early to do some work on it.
She was unable to access any files on the server. The second PC in that office works just fine so she did what she needed to do using it.
When I arrived, I found that File Explorer crashes under her account. Under my admin account and under the new account, everything seems normal until I try to connect to the server or map a drive using browse. No computers appear under Network - not even the local machine.
However, I can connect to network drives which were previously mapped on the new account and my account. And on those accounts, I can map a drive by entering the full path.
Another part of the issue is that there are two critical applications that run on the server which cannot be accessed from that PC. One is the accounting software, the other is the property tax billing and collections app.
Again, the third PC works fine. All shared drives appear under Network and all apps work perfectly. What mystifies me is how this just started with no warning. Everything has worked fine for the last week since I added the new account until this morning.
I've restarted everything and I can ping all 4 machines from any computer. I also tested the Mayor's computer and encountered the same problem as the 2nd computer in the clerk's office.
I think I've described the issue as best I can. Hope I haven't left anything out though I probably did. Thanks for your help!
I installed the system two years ago and it has run flawlessly. Last week I added a new user account for a part-time employee. Everything was fine until this morning when one of the part-time clerks (NOT the new user) was there early to do some work on it.
She was unable to access any files on the server. The second PC in that office works just fine so she did what she needed to do using it.
When I arrived, I found that File Explorer crashes under her account. Under my admin account and under the new account, everything seems normal until I try to connect to the server or map a drive using browse. No computers appear under Network - not even the local machine.
However, I can connect to network drives which were previously mapped on the new account and my account. And on those accounts, I can map a drive by entering the full path.
Another part of the issue is that there are two critical applications that run on the server which cannot be accessed from that PC. One is the accounting software, the other is the property tax billing and collections app.
Again, the third PC works fine. All shared drives appear under Network and all apps work perfectly. What mystifies me is how this just started with no warning. Everything has worked fine for the last week since I added the new account until this morning.
I've restarted everything and I can ping all 4 machines from any computer. I also tested the Mayor's computer and encountered the same problem as the 2nd computer in the clerk's office.
I think I've described the issue as best I can. Hope I haven't left anything out though I probably did. Thanks for your help!