Host Only WORKGROUP not accessible

[svbhvman]

I don't know if this is a VirtualBox issue or just a networking issue but here it goes. I setup a Host Only Connection on my Win 7 (64) Host machine, identified as "BOB" on the network, and I am running Factory Talk Activation Manager (software that serves certain activation licenses) on it. I then setup a Host Only connection on my Guest VM (XP Pro) and I am running Factory Talk Activation Manager (FTAM) on it in client mode to fetch the licenses from the Host machine. Both Host and Guest are members of the HOME workgroup. The FTAM software requires me to browse the network and select the Machine that is serving the Activation Licenses by machine/network name, eg: "BOB". The problem is that I cannot get access to the HOME workgroup. I have changed the Win 7 network policies to allow unidentified networks (VB Host Only) to be made Private and changed the network to type WORK so now I can ping the Host from the Guest and the Guest from the host but still not able to reach the HOST via the Host Only network by name nor even see the HOME workgroup. Any ideas on what I need to do to see the HOST by name from the guest via Host Only. I can change the connection type if necessary. I just chose Host Only because I need the stated functionality when the PC is not connected to any physical network and thought Host Only was the route to go from what I had read in the manual.

Thanks,
SvbHvman

[Sasquatch]

Disable the Windows firewall for the Host-Only adapter. That should get things going a lot better. By default, the firewall will block all because it's in public domain. But if you changed it to Work, then you would still need to allow the server side through the firewall. Since it's just a server-client connection, you may as well disable the whole firewall to avoid any issues caused by it.

[BillG]

Also make sure that Netbios over TCP/IP is enabled on the Win 7 side. XP doesn't understand the Win 7 network discovery methods so you need to use the NT-style computer browser service, which uses Netbios names and broadcasts.

Since you have a Windows host you can use a Microsoft Loopback Adapter instead of a Host Only adapter if you want.

[svbhvman]

I have done what was suggested by each of the users (Sasquatch and BillG) who replied and I get the same result. I have attached a picture of the windows response.

[Sasquatch]

That's the Network Discovery that's disabled on W7. You may see it or enter it's name, but the firewall will block it unless you specifically tell it to allow it (in other words, enable it). By default, the firewall rules on Host-Only are set to public and even if you change it, after a reboot it will most likely return to public.
Just Google the error, you should get more information about this situation with W7 and XP.

[svbhvman]

SOLUTION:

I have finally figured out a solution for running Factory Talk Activation Manager as a server on a Windows 7 host and as a client on an XP Virtual Box Client. The trick is to set the FactoryTalk Activation Manager's "Activation's Path" on the client to the port#@IP_address of the server running on the host. The port is uses is 27000 so the path would look like this

27000@192.168.56.1

on a standard VirtualBox Host Only setup. It works great and now I no longer need to capture my activation dongle in the client machine and I can run multiple VM's at the same time and they all get activation licenses.

SvbHvman

[svbhvman]

Here's a step by step procedure:

Factory Talk Activation Manager and VirtualBox

On the HOST machine open the network connections dialog and select the VirtualBox Host Only adapter and set it’s IP to a Static address of 192.168.56.1 and Subnet Mask to 255.255.255.0. Leave the Gateway and DNS blank.

Install FTAM on the HOST machine. Lock the activations to a hardware device on the HOST machine. Preferably not the WiFi adapter on a laptop (activations won’t be accessible if the network adapter is disabled). Open the Firewall on the HOST machine and allow the following programs to pass through on ports 27000 – 27009 or just allow them on all ports (easier).

Windows 7
C:\Program Files (x86)\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\Tools\ftmanager.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\flexsvr.exe
C:\Program Files (x86)\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\lmdrg.exe

Windows XP
C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\Tools\ftmanager.exe
C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\flexsvr.exe
C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\FactoryTalk Activation\lmdrg.exe

Make sure you have a VirtualBox Host Only network adapter enabled on your GUEST. If not set it up before proceeding. You can use Static or DHCP, the choice is yours. Make sure you can successfully ping the HOST from the GUEST.

ping 192.168.56.1

Now install Factory Talk Activation Manager on the GUEST machine. Go to Manage Activations and click the Add Server button. Enter 27000@192.168.56.1 (the virtual network IP address of the HOST machine). Now click on the Refresh Activations and you should see the activations start to populate.