I'm using VirtualBox/2 on eComStation 2.0 (Release Candidate 4). Since I have a Mac on my network, I need to use Samba Server for networking rather than File and Print Sharing. When running Windows under Vbox using NAT networking, the VM was able to "See" the Mac and the eCS machine and access files on the Mac and the eCS box, but the Mac could not access the VM. This, as I understand it, is normal.
So I upgraded VBOX to the latest release, and installed the TAP driver. I used MPTS to install the TAP driver as a second NIC in addition to my onboard (Intel Pro 100) NIC. I added the TCPIP protocol to the TAP driver (not NETBIOS over TCPIP, which I understand is incompatible with Samba) Then in the VM, I switched from NAT to Host Interface networking, bridged to LAN0 (the onboard NIC).
When I started the VM, all the other computers on the network could "See" the VM and share files, and vice versa. Now, however, the eCS host machine had disappeared from the network. Executing the program "Find Samba Machines" showed that the eCS box was not listed. I could not link to the eCS box from the MAC, the VM, or any other computer on the network.
So, I went backwards, deinstalled the TAP driver, switched the VM back to NAT, and rebooted. Now the eCS machine is back on the network, and the VM can now "See" the eCS machine (which is really what I needed in the first place).
This isn't a major problem for me. My real need is to run Windows in a VM under eCS, and sharing between the other computers and the VM isn't really necessary, so using NAT rather than the TAP driver is fine. But I thought I'd ask about this anyway, since others may need to use the TAP driver in a Samba network.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
Thanks!
Steve Crutchfield