Samba settings for WINS Server


dlandon

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Add settings to the SMB settings to enable Samba as a WINS server, or set IP address for another WINS server on the network.  WINS server settings would be mutually exclusive.  Samba on unRAID cannot be a WINS server and also use another WINS server.

 

For Samba to be a WINS server:

[global]
   wins support = yes

 

For Samba to use another WINS server:

[global]
   wins server = 192.168.1.1

 

Using a WINS server on a Windows network can improve Windows browsing and network name resolution.

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  • 2 weeks later...

WINS is still useful although in a limited way -- I'm currently using it so that I have windows browsing and name resolution across subnets.

 

I'm currently using an old Linux machine that no longer has any purpose other than running WINS on one of the subnets. This topic is timely as on my to do list for today was copying the WINS config from SAMBA to unRaid in hopes that it would work.

 

I don't know if it will but I figured it I copied the relevant settings from smb.conf to Samba Extra Configuration I was hoping that would allow me to have unRaid run WINS and then I could decommission the old computer.

 

Anyone know if this will work?

 

Easy enough to test but if someone know it will save me ~20 minutes or so.

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WINS is still useful although in a limited way -- I'm currently using it so that I have windows browsing and name resolution across subnets.

 

I'm currently using an old Linux machine that no longer has any purpose other than running WINS on one of the subnets. This topic is timely as on my to do list for today was copying the WINS config from SAMBA to unRaid in hopes that it would work.

 

I don't know if it will but I figured it I copied the relevant settings from smb.conf to Samba Extra Configuration I was hoping that would allow me to have unRaid run WINS and then I could decommission the old computer.

 

Anyone know if this will work?

 

Easy enough to test but if someone know it will save me ~20 minutes or so.

 

Yeah should work, follow dlandon's first post.

Here is documentation on smb.conf in all it's glory:

https://linux.die.net/man/5/smb.conf

Search in there for "wins" to learn everything you didn't want to know about a WINS server.

Post back with your results.

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Thanks for the response.

 

I tried it but only had partial success. I copied the settings exactly from smb.conf then edited them to use the two unRaid IPs. That is the only thing I changed. I then changed the DHCP settings to push out the unRaid IPs as the new WINS server. Everything worked except for cross-subnet browsing. I know that can take some time but we've hit 24 hours and still nothing so I'm reverting back. Possibly I overlooked something but everything else works fine -- name resolution works.

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  • 4 years later...

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