No password for server 2003 clients??
No password for server 2003 clients??
just wonder if anyone know if you can login to a server(2003) from a client Pc's (XP Pro) without using a password... e.g. I want to be able to access a CD or drive on a sever (2003) without the client Pc’s (XP Pro) using any sort of password. So they can come in the morning turn the pc on, it loads up to the desktop BANG!! There is a mapped drive on the desktop that they can use without have to enter any password at all…. Basically I am looking a simple files sharing. I can do this with Window 2000 server but I can’t get it to work with 2003….. Anybody know if it can be done?
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FlyingPenguin
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No, not easily. Even opening the guest account in 2003 won't let you do that. Everyone has to have a valid user account and password. It's inherent in the new security features of 2003.
There is probably a way to disable it but I've never looked into it.
Moreover it would be foolish to do so if your server is on a network that's connected to the Internet. You need secure passwords just as a final barrier to prevent someone from hacking in using NetBIOS over TCP/IP.
HOWEVER there are ways to avoid having your users go through a login prompt.
Most of my clients are small business clients with no need or desire for in-office security. Except maybe for the server, none of the workstations are physically secure.
They all still have a user account with a password but I use the same password for ALL the users (to keep things simple) except for the administrator account on the server. Then I use TweakUI on each workstation to configure the workstations to auto-logon.
So when a user turns on his computer in the morning, it boots right into Windows with their mapped drives all set to go. No logon required. The workstation IS still logging in, and the network is secure, but it's transparent to the user.
Speaking of network security, keep in mind that if you don't close all your guest accounts and password the admin accounts on all the workstations, your network shares are basically wide open. Server might be secure, but someone can easily hack into a non-passworded admin account on a workstation (for instance) and access all the server shares through that.
There is probably a way to disable it but I've never looked into it.
Moreover it would be foolish to do so if your server is on a network that's connected to the Internet. You need secure passwords just as a final barrier to prevent someone from hacking in using NetBIOS over TCP/IP.
HOWEVER there are ways to avoid having your users go through a login prompt.
Most of my clients are small business clients with no need or desire for in-office security. Except maybe for the server, none of the workstations are physically secure.
They all still have a user account with a password but I use the same password for ALL the users (to keep things simple) except for the administrator account on the server. Then I use TweakUI on each workstation to configure the workstations to auto-logon.
So when a user turns on his computer in the morning, it boots right into Windows with their mapped drives all set to go. No logon required. The workstation IS still logging in, and the network is secure, but it's transparent to the user.
Speaking of network security, keep in mind that if you don't close all your guest accounts and password the admin accounts on all the workstations, your network shares are basically wide open. Server might be secure, but someone can easily hack into a non-passworded admin account on a workstation (for instance) and access all the server shares through that.
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“Be careful when a democracy is sick; fascism comes to its bedside, but it is not to inquire about its health.”
― Albert Camus
“Be careful when a democracy is sick; fascism comes to its bedside, but it is not to inquire about its health.”
― Albert Camus