XBox 360 won't connect to our network

[TheSalche]

@Thanir - but I'm running XP, not Media Center. I'd have to go out and buy Media Center to connect to the network like that right?

edit: err is media center just an add-on program for XP? Would it be bad for me to obtain a copy through torrent even though I'm running a legit copy of XP?

@Dire - There's no IP conflicts for sure, I have the IP set manually but I'll check the MAC address. What do I need to check for DHCP settings? Should they be the same on my xbox as on my computer.

edit: where can I find the MAC address of my computer?

@BBC Z I checked for media discovery in my services and didn't see it. I followed the steps from Thanir's previous links to fix my services though.

[rjoefish]

Media Extender is a free program, I use it for my XP comp to XBOX connection. Its a very small program, was free, and is very easy to use. Go get it.

[Thanir]

Ok I think I figured out the confusion. I got my 360 at launch day, and it seems like the way things work is a bit different. The instructions on how to set things up seem different as it seems like the Extender stuff is built into the Zune software? I didn't quite understand rjoefish's post until I saw the page before it http://www.xbox.com/en-US/pcsetup/alldownloads.htm . I would say following the instructions on the page he linked should fix all your issues.

[Dire]

FWIW, I never installed anything except WMP 11 (particularly - no media extender) and have had no problems with sharing between my XP SP2 PC and the 360.

RE: TheSalche, if you're using DHCP then your settings should be the same for your PC and your 360. I was mostly curious about how you were assigning network IPs: manually/static, DHCP, or 'static' DHCP. Helps narrow down where any networking issues might be.

[TheSalche]

Dire - I've been assigning network ips manually, the important things on my network (i.e. my computer & the 360) are set statically. My roommate's computers are not, but I don't see how that could be an issue.

[TheSalche]

Another update: Installed the Zune software, followed the steps exactly, etc and the part where I am getting stuck at (same place in WMP11 basically) is that my PC cannot see the 360. Gonna go and check the MAC addresses now.

edit: Dire, I just checked ipconfig and it said my DHCP was NOT enabled. Could that be it?

double edit: mac address is not the problem

[TheSalche]

bumpidy

[BrookTrout]

Don't bother checking your mac address - on your PC, click start, goto run and type 'cmd' then hit enter.

then, in the window that appears, type "ping 192.168.2.1" or whatever your xbox's IP address is (generally starts with 192.168...) let me know if you get a Reply or a Request Timed out.

[Dire]

[ QUOTE ]
Dire - I've been assigning network ips manually, the important things on my network (i.e. my computer & the 360) are set statically. My roommate's computers are not, but I don't see how that could be an issue.

[/ QUOTE ]

This could be the problem. If you're mixing DHCP with static assignments without specifying a mutually exclusive range for the DHCP, you could get an IP conflict (DHCP assigns your roommates PC an address you've assigned to the 360) which would interfer with communication between your PC and the 360.

Even if this isn't the problem, you should go ahead and specify that DHCP start at a range beyond what you assigned. This should be simple to change in your router. If you're assigning 192.168.1.2 to 192.168.1.20 or whatever, then just have the DHCP start at 192.168.1.100.

[TheSalche]

@BrookTrout I got Request timed out error message

@Dire I set the DHCP to be 200 which is over our IP addresses (those are in the 100 range).