Chapter 28. Analysing and solving samba problems

There are many sources of information available in the form of mailing lists, RFC's and documentation. The docs that come with the samba distribution contain very good explanations of -general SMB topics such as browsing.

Diagnostics tools

+general SMB topics such as browsing.

Diagnostics tools

One of the best diagnostic tools for debugging problems is Samba itself. -You can use the -d option for both smbd and nmbd to specify what -'debug level' at which to run. See the man pages on smbd, nmbd and +You can use the -d option for both smbd and nmbd to specify what +debug level at which to run. See the man pages on smbd, nmbd and smb.conf for more information on debugging options. The debug level can range from 1 (the default) to 10 (100 for debugging passwords).

Another helpful method of debugging is to compile samba using the -gcc -g flag. This will include debug +gcc -g flag. This will include debug information in the binaries and allow you to attach gdb to the running smbd / nmbd process. In order to attach gdb to an smbd process for an NT workstation, first get the workstation to make the @@ -24,7 +24,10 @@ idle timeout) So, in between pressing ctrl alt delete, and actually typing in your password, you can attach gdb and continue.

Some useful samba commands worth investigating: -

testparam | more
smbclient -L //{netbios name of server}

+	$ testparam | more
+	$ smbclient -L //{netbios name of server}
+

An SMB enabled version of tcpdump is available from http://www.tcpdup.org/. Ethereal, another good packet sniffer for Unix and Win32 @@ -39,7 +42,7 @@ The version on the NT Server install CD will only allow monitoring of network traffic directed to the local NT box and broadcasts on the local subnet. Be aware that Ethereal can read and write netmon formatted files. -

Installing 'Network Monitor' on an NT Workstation or a Windows 9x box

Installing netmon on an NT workstation requires a couple of steps. The following are for installing Netmon V4.00.349, which comes with Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0, on Microsoft Windows NT @@ -47,51 +50,44 @@ Workstation 4.0. The process should be similar for other versions of Windows NT / Netmon. You will need both the Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 Install CD and the Workstation 4.0 Install CD.

-Initially you will need to install 'Network Monitor Tools and Agent' +Initially you will need to install Network Monitor Tools and Agent on the NT Server. To do this -

Goto Start - Settings - Control Panel - - Network - Services - Add
Select the 'Network Monitor Tools and Agent' and - click on 'OK'.
Click 'OK' on the Network Control Panel. +
- Goto Start - Settings - Control Panel - + Network - Services - Add
- Select the Network Monitor Tools and Agent and + click on OK.
- Click OK on the Network Control Panel.
- Insert the Windows NT Server 4.0 install CD when prompted.
At this point the Netmon files should exist in -%SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.*. -Two subdirectories exist as well, parsers\ +%SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.*. +Two subdirectories exist as well, parsers\ which contains the necessary DLL's for parsing the netmon packet -dump, and captures\. +dump, and captures\.
In order to install the Netmon tools on an NT Workstation, you will first need to install the 'Network Monitor Agent' from the Workstation install CD. -
- Goto Start - Settings - Control Panel - - Network - Services - Add
- Select the 'Network Monitor Agent' and click - on 'OK'.
- Click 'OK' on the Network Control Panel. +
  - Goto Start - Settings - Control Panel - + Network - Services - Add
  - Select the Network Monitor Agent and click + on OK.
  - Click OK on the Network Control Panel.
  - Insert the Windows NT Workstation 4.0 install CD when prompted.
  -Now copy the files from the NT Server in %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.* -to %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.* on the Workstation and set -permissions as you deem appropriate for your site. You will need +Now copy the files from the NT Server in %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.* +to %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\netmon\*.* on the Workstation and set +permissions as you deem appropriate for your site. You will need administrative rights on the NT box to run netmon.
  To install Netmon on a Windows 9x box install the network monitor agent -from the Windows 9x CD (\admin\nettools\netmon). There is a readme +from the Windows 9x CD (\admin\nettools\netmon). There is a readme file located with the netmon driver files on the CD if you need information on how to do this. Copy the files from a working Netmon installation. -
Useful URL's
- Home of Samba site - http://samba.org. We have a mirror near you !
- The Development document -on the Samba mirrors might mention your problem. If so, -it might mean that the developers are working on it.
- See how Scott Merrill simulates a BDC behavior at +
Useful URL's
- See how Scott Merrill simulates a BDC behavior at - http://www.skippy.net/linux/smb-howto.html.
- Although 2.0.7 has almost had its day as a PDC, David Bannon will - keep the 2.0.7 PDC pages at - http://bioserve.latrobe.edu.au/samba going for a while yet.
- Misc links to CIFS information - http://samba.org/cifs/
- NT Domains for Unix - http://mailhost.cb1.com/~lkcl/ntdom/
- FTP site for older SMB specs: + http://www.skippy.net/linux/smb-howto.html.
- FTP site for older SMB specs: - ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/developr/drg/CIFS/
Getting help from the mailing lists
+ ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/developr/drg/CIFS/

Getting help from the mailing lists

There are a number of Samba related mailing lists. Go to http://samba.org, click on your nearest mirror -and then click on Support and then click on +and then click on Support and then click on Samba related mailing lists.

For questions relating to Samba TNG go to @@ -104,7 +100,7 @@ not paid and they never guarantee to produce a particular feature at a particular time. Any time lines are 'best guess' and nothing more.

Always mention what version of samba you are using and what operating system its running under. You should probably list the -relevant sections of your smb.conf file, at least the options +relevant sections of your smb.conf file, at least the options in [global] that affect PDC support.

In addition to the version, if you obtained Samba via CVS mention the date when you last checked it out.

Try and make your question clear and brief, lots of long, convoluted questions get deleted before they are completely read ! @@ -123,12 +119,12 @@ error messages.

(Possibly) If you have a complete netmon trace ( the pipe to the error ) you can send the *.CAP file as well.

Please think carefully before attaching a document to an email. Consider pasting the relevant parts into the body of the message. The samba mailing lists go to a huge number of people, do they all need a copy of your -smb.conf in their attach directory?

How to get off the mailinglists

To have your name removed from a samba mailing list, go to the +smb.conf in their attach directory?

How to get off the mailinglists

To have your name removed from a samba mailing list, go to the same place you went to to get on it. Go to http://lists.samba.org, -click on your nearest mirror and then click on Support and -then click on Samba related mailing lists. Or perhaps see +click on your nearest mirror and then click on Support and +then click on Samba related mailing lists. Or perhaps see here

Please don't post messages to the list asking to be removed, you will just be referred to the above address (unless that process failed in some way...) -

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Chapter 27. The samba checklist	Home	Chapter 29. Reporting Bugs

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Chapter 33. The samba checklist	Home	Chapter 35. Reporting Bugs