Hi, I have searched intensively on the mailing list archive. The following question has been asked in many variants many times but never been replied to. So I try again ;-) : On a big messy LAN on a dorm there is a central Samba 2.0.7 server with the configuration: netbios name = DORM-SERVER workgroup = DORM-WORKGROUP os level = 254 domain master = no local master = yes preferred master = yes Now, there are severel Windows machines on the net which also have DORM-WORKGROUP as workgroup and which have local firewalls installed. This is very bad since it appears like they think they are alone on the network and then announces themselves as local master browsers for DORM-WORKGROUP. Typically it goes like this: --------------------------- [2001/04/26 22:07:46, 0] nmbd/nmbd_incomingdgrams.c:process_local_master_announce(309) process_local_master_announce: Server BAD-WINDOWS-MACHINE at IP 2.2.2.2 is announcing itself as a local master browser for workgroup DORM-WORKGROUP and we think we are master. Forcing election. [2001/04/26 22:07:46, 0] nmbd/nmbd_become_lmb.c:unbecome_local_master_success(155) ***** Samba name server DORM-SERVER has stopped being a local master browser for workgroup DORM-WORKGROUP on subnet 1.1.1.1 ***** [2001/04/26 22:08:03, 0] nmbd/nmbd_become_lmb.c:become_local_master_stage2(405) ***** Samba name server DORM-SERVER is now a local master browser for workgroup DORM-WORKGROUP on subnet 1 .1.1.1 ***** --------------------------- But sometimes it goes like this: --------------------------- [2001/04/26 22:18:28, 0] nmbd/nmbd_incomingdgrams.c:process_local_master_announce(309) process_local_master_announce: Server BAD-WINDOWS-MACHINE at IP 2.2.2.2 is announcing itself as a local master browser for workgroup DORM-WORKGROUP and we think we are master. Forcing election. [2001/04/26 22:18:28, 0] nmbd/nmbd_become_lmb.c:unbecome_local_master_success(155) ***** Samba name server DORM-SERVER has stopped being a local master browser for workgroup DORM-WORKGROUP on subnet 1.1.1.1 ***** [2001/04/26 22:18:44, 0] nmbd/nmbd_nameregister.c:register_name_response(111) register_name_response: server at IP 3.3.3.3 rejected our name registration of DORM-WORKGROUP<1d> with error code 6. [2001/04/26 22:18:44, 0] nmbd/nmbd_become_lmb.c:become_local_master_fail2(426) become_local_master_fail2: failed to register name DORM-WORKGROUP<1d> on subnet 1.1.1.1. Failed to become a local master browser. [2001/04/26 22:18:44, 0] nmbd/nmbd_namelistdb.c:standard_fail_register(294) standard_fail_register: Failed to register/refresh name DORM-WORKGROUP<1d> on subnet 1.1.1.1 --------------------------- And the server just seems to give up and never try to become master again until it is restarted :-( Is there anything one can do to make DORM-WORKGROUP somewhat browseable even when Windows machines with local firewalls are installed? The samba server is also a wins server and (almost) every machine is configured to register with this wins server via dhcp. Christian