Here are some random hints that you may find useful. These really
should be incorporated in the main docs someday.


----------------------
HINT: Always test your smb.conf with testparm before using it

If your smb.conf file is invalid then samba will fail to load. Run
testparm over it before you install it just to make sure there aren't
any basic syntax or logical errors.


----------------------
HINT: Try printing with smbclient first

If you have problems printing, test with smbclient first. Just connect using 
"smbclient '\\server\printer' -P" and use the "print" command.

Once this works, you know that Samba is setup correctly for printing,
and you should be able to get it to work from your PCs.

This particularly helps in getting the "print command" right.

---------------------- 
HINT: Use the same username/password on clients as on the unix server.

This makes lots of things work better. It overcomes the fundamental
problem that some clients (notably WfWg) don't pass usernames in "net
use" type operations. 

Your WfWg username is specified when you login to your PC.

It's probably even worth changing your login names on the PCs to match
your unix names so you can do this. You can get things to work without
doing this, but life will be harder.

If you can't make your passwords the same then it's still worth making
your username the same.


-----------------------
HINT: Use "security = user" in [globals]

If you have followed the previous hint and have the same username on
your unix server as your PCs then choose "security = user" in the
[globals] section of smb.conf. 

This will mean your password is checked only when you first connect,
and subsequent connections to printers, disks etc will go more
smoothly and much faster.

The main problem with "security = user" if you use WfWg is that you
will ONLY be able to connect as the username that you log into WfWg
with. This is because WfWg silently ignores the password field in the
connect drive dialog box if the server is in user security mode.

------------------------
HINT: Make your printers not "guest ok"

If your printers are not "guest ok" and you are using "security =
user" and have matching unix and PC usernames then you will attach to
the printer without trouble as your own username. This will mean you
will be able to delete print jobs (in 1.8.06 and above) and printer
accounting will be possible.


-----------------------
HINT: Use a sensible "guest" account

Even if all your services are not available to "guest" you will need a
guest account. This is because the browsing is done as guest. In many
cases setting "guest account = ftp" will do the trick. Using the
default guest account or "guest account = nobody" will give problems on
many unixes. If in doubt create another account with minimal
privilages and use it instead. Your users don't need to know the
password of the guest account.



-----------------------
HINT: Use the latest TCP/IP stack from microsoft if you use Windows
for workgroups.

The early TCP/IP stacks had lots of bugs.

Microsoft has released an incremental upgrade to their TCP/IP 32-Bit
VxD drivers.  The latest release can be found on their ftp site at
ftp.microsoft.com, located in /peropsys/windows/public/tcpip/wfwt32.exe.
There is an update.txt file there that describes the problems that were
fixed.  New files include WINSOCK.DLL, TELNET.EXE, WSOCK.386, VNBT.386,
WSTCP.386, TRACERT.EXE, NETSTAT.EXE, and NBTSTAT.EXE.


-----------------------
HINT: nmbd can act as a "WINS" server

By default SMB clients use broadcasts to find shares. Recent clients
(such as WfWg) can use a "wins" server instead, whcih reduces your
broadcast traffic and allows you to find names across routers.

Just point your WfWg and NT clients at the Samba box in the WINS option.


-----------------------
HINT: you may need to delete your .pwl files when you change password.

WfWg does a lousy job with passwords. I find that if I change my
password on either the unix box or the PC the safest thing to do is to
delete the .pwl files in the windows directory. The PC will complain about not finding the files, but will soon get over it, allowing you to enter the new password.

If you don't do this you may find that WfWg remembers and uses the old
password, even if you told it a new one.

Often WfWg will totally ignore a password you give it in a dialog box.


-----------------------
HINT: Getting WfWg to be a master browser

Apart from exporting a drive, you should be able to get WfWg to be a
master browser by using:

[Network]
MaintainServerList=YES

in the system.ini file


----------------------
HINT: Using MS Access

Here are some notes on running MS-Access on a Samba drive from Stefan 
Kjellberg <stefank@esi.com.au>

1. Opening a database in 'exclusive' mode does NOT work. Samba ignores
   r/w/share modes on file open.

2. Make sure that you open the database as 'shared' and to 'lock modified
   records'

3. Of course locking must be enabled for the particular share (smb.conf)
