[EMETIB]

I'm thinking about installing the Windows 8 Release Preview on the desktop too. Anyone had any issues with XBMC on 8?

[WisdomWolf]

I had no issues with XBMC on Windows 8, but the "freezing bug" caused me to undergo a rather lengthy RAID rebuild. I remember having more issues with SMB shares and permissions when I reinstalled Windows 7 on an SSD then I had when setting up Windows 8 RP. In fact, I ended up sharing a whole lot with virtually no user restrictions in order to get things working. I found that the best way to troubleshoot was to take a look at the actual shares and permissions setup in the computer administration console. I'm not on my PC atm, but will report back with the exact process tomorrow.

[EMETIB]

I had no issues with XBMC on Windows 8, but the "freezing bug" caused me to undergo a rather lengthy RAID rebuild. I remember having more issues with SMB shares and permissions when I reinstalled Windows 7 on an SSD then I had when setting up Windows 8 RP. In fact, I ended up sharing a whole lot with virtually no user restrictions in order to get things working. I found that the best way to troubleshoot was to take a look at the actual shares and permissions setup in the computer administration console. I'm not on my PC atm, but will report back with the exact process tomorrow.

Thanks WisdomWolf. I'd appreciate that. The thing is that I won't be using XBMC much on the actual Windows 8 machine. That machine will be sharing the files across the network to other devices. Mainly iOS (iPad, iPhone and AppleTV). I just need that functionality working with Windows 8. Look forward to your update. Thanks again!

[WisdomWolf]

I get what you mean. I have a desktop that is pretty much the dedicated media server for the house. It only really runs XBMC in order to update the library automatically when new files are placed in my TV or Movies directories.

Ok, in order to take a look at the shares on the PC and verify settings and permissions you need to get to the Computer Management console. To get there, go to Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management
Select Shared Folders in the left pane, followed by Shares. You can view all the PCs shares here and verify their settings by right-clicking and choosing properties. I'd double check that things are set correctly under share permissions and security. If you aren't concerned with security you can just be sure to allow full control to the Everyone group under both tabs. Let me know if that helps.

[EMETIB]

I get what you mean. I have a desktop that is pretty much the dedicated media server for the house. It only really runs XBMC in order to update the library automatically when new files are placed in my TV or Movies directories.

Ok, in order to take a look at the shares on the PC and verify settings and permissions you need to get to the Computer Management console. To get there, go to Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management
Select Shared Folders in the left pane, followed by Shares. You can view all the PCs shares here and verify their settings by right-clicking and choosing properties. I'd double check that things are set correctly under share permissions and security. If you aren't concerned with security you can just be sure to allow full control to the Everyone group under both tabs. Let me know if that helps.

Thanks WisdomWolf. But still to no avail. All permissions and security were already set to FULL CONTROL for everyone and my own user account..

[WisdomWolf]

I just remembered that there are at least two additional changes that may help. One is changing the local security policy so that anonymous = everyone and the other is to change the authentication type windows will accept. You can also downgrade the version of smb used, but I'm pretty sure that should be a last resort.

I'm not sure if this is still true, but I also recall Windows Live Sign-in assistant causing quite a few problems with smb shares at one point.

EDIT: It's also worth double checking the settings in Network and Sharing Center. Go to Advanced sharing settings and see what option is selected under File sharing connections. If the default (Use 128-bit encryption) is checked, try changing it so that 40 and 56-bit encryption is allowed.

[EMETIB]

I just remembered that there are at least two additional changes that may help. One is changing the local security policy so that anonymous = everyone and the other is to change the authentication type windows will accept. You can also downgrade the version of smb used, but I'm pretty sure that should be a last resort.

How do I change/downgrade the SMB version?

I'm not sure if this is still true, but I also recall Windows Live Sign-in assistant causing quite a few problems with smb shares at one point.

Yeh, I read that on a few threads and I'm sure that's not installed on my system.

EDIT: It's also worth double checking the settings in Network and Sharing Center. Go to Advanced sharing settings and see what option is selected under File sharing connections. If the default (Use 128-bit encryption) is checked, try changing it so that 40 and 56-bit encryption is allowed.

I've changed this previously too, but still the same.

Thanks again WisdomWolf.

[efbiaye]

EMETIB, I had numerous problems with Windows file sharing as well. I finally managed to set everything up, but had problems with constant buffering issues.
Sadly SMB is really slow in this regards and there are much better options out there.

I would suggest you try sharing the files via NFS protocol using any available NFS server (something really easy to set up): http://www.hanewin.net/nfs-e.htm
I also had great results sharing the files via UPNP with PS3 media server or XMBC (Win version)
http://www.ps3mediaserver.org/

In any case, no only my issues were gone, but I am able now to stream (with no transcoding) 1080p MKV encodes with almost no buffering issues.

[WisdomWolf]

While an NFS solution worked well for you, I wouldn't advise that as the end-all-be-all answer. Samba is perfectly capable of streaming 1080p MKV and beyond, but more importantly, is built into Windows. I'd always recommend the tools built into an OS before attempting to run additional programs.

EMETIB, I don't recall off the top of my head how to change the SMB version. I just remember using that some time ago, but AFAIK it's no longer required. The more likely answer lies in the security policy and ensuring that anonymous is included in the Everyone group.

PS. I recently opted to re-install Windows 8 and run with that. To my surprise, I didn't have to do any security policy or registry editing to get things up and running. I setup my shares, opened the ports for MySQL server and tested my XBMC clients (2xATV2 [ios 4.3, ios 5.1], iPad 3, OpenELEC, various Windows PCs, and 2xMacbooks) and had zero issues. Samba shares are accessible from Fileshare on iOS and ES File Explorer on Android, as well.

[EMETIB]

EMETIB, I had numerous problems with Windows file sharing as well. I finally managed to set everything up, but had problems with constant buffering issues.
Sadly SMB is really slow in this regards and there are much better options out there.

I would suggest you try sharing the files via NFS protocol using any available NFS server (something really easy to set up): http://www.hanewin.net/nfs-e.htm
I also had great results sharing the files via UPNP with PS3 media server or XMBC (Win version)
http://www.ps3mediaserver.org/

In any case, no only my issues were gone, but I am able now to stream (with no transcoding) 1080p MKV encodes with almost no buffering issues.

Thanks! I gave that a try but have no idea how to configure it to work. Nothing showed up on the iOS XBMCs.

While an NFS solution worked well for you, I wouldn't advise that as the end-all-be-all answer. Samba is perfectly capable of streaming 1080p MKV and beyond, but more importantly, is built into Windows. I'd always recommend the tools built into an OS before attempting to run additional programs.

EMETIB, I don't recall off the top of my head how to change the SMB version. I just remember using that some time ago, but AFAIK it's no longer required. The more likely answer lies in the security policy and ensuring that anonymous is included in the Everyone group.

PS. I recently opted to re-install Windows 8 and run with that. To my surprise, I didn't have to do any security policy or registry editing to get things up and running. I setup my shares, opened the ports for MySQL server and tested my XBMC clients (2xATV2 [ios 4.3, ios 5.1], iPad 3, OpenELEC, various Windows PCs, and 2xMacbooks) and had zero issues. Samba shares are accessible from Fileshare on iOS and ES File Explorer on Android, as well.

Cheers. I think I'll prepare the upgrade to Windows 8. It should run okay on a HP Microserver though right?

[denmalley]

Damn. I was really hoping that the answer to my woes would be answered here since I have the precise problem mentioned. Not too keen on upgrading to Win8 just to get filesharing to work. This is ridiculous.