updated : Nov. 18, 2000
	Windows 95/98/ME DCC-Connecting to Win2000

For serial direct cable connections, the connection from Windows95/98/ME to Windows 2000 using Direct Cable Connection is very similar to the connection from Windows95/98/ME to NT4:

After Installing Direct Cable support on Windows95/98, configure Windows95 for Direct Cable
Client using TCP/IP protocol, ( if you use a serial cable, make sure that the "Serial Connection Modem" is defined
for a Port-speed of 115200 ) and make your connection:

	Verify, that your DCC cable is connected and that DCC is configured for this type of cable, then "Connect"
	You should see this message only for a few seconds.If it stays longer, then: - your cable is not connected - your host is not proper configured - your cable maybe improperly wired time for DCC Trouble-shooting
	You should get after a few seconds the status message, that it is verifying the username and password, and (if you made at startup the logon to the "Windows Logon" and NOT the "Client for Microsoft Networks") the User Logon : enter a valid Windows 2000 username and Password, and if there is no Domain-server, then leave the field for "Logon domain" empty !
	If you get disconnected immediately, then your Username and password has been most probably incorrect (I got this, when I had in the field for "Logon Domain" something defined )

	If we use TCP/IP as protocol, you will be prompted to the name of the DCC-host, please enter the computer name of your DCC-host.
	After a few seconds, it should display the shared resources of the DCC host, which you can now access the usual way. Note: on my system, the parallel DCC connection was terminated after a very short time (less than a minute) unless I opened immediately one of the shared resources of the DCC host. That is due to a bug in Windows 2000, ( see below the info found in Q261276 ), dropping the connection if it is not used for 20-40 sec. When you display the shared resource, then the Client will check in the background for any change inside that folder, keeping the connection active. You can also use the workaround with PING suggested in Q261276.
	Using Win95/98 command (via start / Run ) "WINIPCFG", you can verify the IP-address assigned by the DCC-host to your DCC-connection (similar to the information displayed on the DCC-host)

All other items (IPC$ message, Accessing other systems on the network)
are identical to connecting via a modem.

Microsoft Knowledge base article Q261276:

Parallel Direct Cable Connection Drops Shortly After Connecting

The information in this article applies to:

• Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
• Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
• Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server
• Microsoft Windows 98
• Microsoft Windows 95

SYMPTOMS

When your direct cable connection through a parallel port has been inactive for 20 to 40 seconds, the connection may be disconnected. Note that this problem only occurs when you use a parallel port for direct connection from your Windows 98/95-based computer to a Windows 2000-based computer.

CAUSE

The problem is caused by a failure in the Windows 2000 parallel port driver.

RESOLUTION

A supported fix that corrects this problem is now available from Microsoft, but it has not been fully regression tested and should be applied only to computers that are experiencing this specific problem. If you are not severely affected by this specific problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next Windows 2000 service pack that contains this fix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information about support costs, please go to the following address on the World Wide Web:

http://support.microsoft.com/directory/overview.asp

The English version of this fix should have the following file attributes or later:

   Date        Time        Size     File name
   -----------------------------------------
   06/22/2000  08:24p      17,680   Ptilink.sys 

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, use the following method:

Use a batch file to continuously ping the Windows 2000 host from the connecting guest. A continuous ping can be performed by using the -t switch and specifying the IP address of the Windows 2000 Host. The IP address of the Windows 2000 host could be the assigned address of a connected network adapter, or the first address in the configured pool of addresses for connecting clients.

For example:

pool = 192.186.1.1 to 192.168.1.3

Use the command:
ping -t 192.168.1.1

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Windows 2000.

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