Can't Access Old WIndows 11 PC on New Windows 11 PC

Question

I am so frustrated right now. Have spent 4 hours trying everything listed on the internet and nothing works. Purchased new Win 11 Pro PC. Old PC OS is Win 11 Home. The old PC can see the shared files on the new PC. However, the new PC can NOT see any shared files on the old PC. I don't even know where to turn anymore. Many of the suggestions are not even clear on which PC to alter things on. Is there anyone that can walk me through this mess. It should not be this difficult to get two Windows 11 PCs to talk to each other.

***Move from Windows / Windows 11 / Files, folders, and storage***

Answer 1

Hello,

First, can you compare the share permissions and NTFS permissions of the account that cannot access the files in the shared folder with the files that can be accessed normally on the old computer? If the permissions are the same and you still cannot access the shared folder, you can try the following methods to see if the problem can be solved.

1. Press the shortcut keys win+R, enter "services.msc" to enter the service management interface, and check whether the workstation service is started. If not, set it to start automatically.
2. Turn on network discovery and file and printer sharing, and then turn off password-protected sharing.

Select the Start button, and then select Settings.

In the Find Settings search bar, type "Manage advanced sharing settings", and then select "Manage advanced sharing settings" from the recommended results.

In the Advanced Sharing Settings window that appears, under Private, select "Turn on network discovery" and then open "File and Printer Sharing".

Under All Networks, select "Turn off password-protected sharing".

3. Enable the sharing service to start automatically. This problem usually occurs when one of the services is not working properly.

Press the Windows logo key + R.

In the Run dialog box, type "services.msc", and then select OK.

Right-click each of the following services, select Properties, and if the service is not running, select the Start menu, and then select Automatic next to Startup type:

Function Discovery Provider Host

Function Discovery Resource Publishing

SSDP Discovery

UPnP Device Host

4. Use the shortcut keys win+R to enter "gpedit.msc" to enter the group policy interface, and then find the sharing and security model of the local account on the right side of Windows Settings->Security Settings->Local Policies->Security Options, and change it to classic mode. After modification, restart the computer and then access the shared folder.

Here is a question similar to yours. Please refer to the following:

Two W11 PC's one has mapped drives, can't be seen by the other pc - Microsoft Community

If the above methods still cannot solve the problem, please ask if you have any related errors when mapping the shared file. If so, please reply here.

Best regards

Zunhui

Answer 2

First of all, I am not an expert. I have no clue what you are asking me to do in the beginning. I am trying to share an entire storage drive that is located on the old PC. I do not know how you got the middle window in your image. The Share button in Properties for the old PC drive is grayed out as I have already shared the drive. And I do not know what I am looking for as far as permissions. At this point, I have shared it with Everyone.

So sorry if I am stupid about this. In all the years I have been working with Windows, I never had this type of problem. It was always easy to get my PCs to see each other until Windows 11 came along.

Paul

Answer 3

Hi pmruzicka,

First, I suggest you check whether the problem is related to the user's permissions. You can set the shared permissions of the old computer's shared drive as follows to see if the new computer can access it. If it still cannot be accessed, use the steps I recommended above to check again.

Answer 4

The old computer can already access anything I share on the new computer. This is not the issue. I need the NEW PC (Win 11 Pro) to be able to see the shared folders on the OLD PC (Win 11 Home) - which it can't.

Answer 5

Hi pmruzicka,

I understand your question. Have you followed the steps I recommended to troubleshoot the problem?