SMB Server 2003 slow file access over network

Hi we have a 2003 SMB server and file access across the network is brutally slow. I have run network diagnostics and it is not the switches or cables themselves. Accessing any file on the server shares is very slow. I just updated to SP2 and the problem still persists. These are all Xp PRo SP2 machines.

Any ideas?

Thanks

 

One simple performance issue I've seen is having large zip files in the root of your main drives or root folders. Windows searches ahead and will try to see what is in those zips, in case your next move is to access them. This can slow the share folder browsing a lot.

The other thing to check is your DNS settings; incorrectly configured DNS causes all sorts of performance problems:

http://www.windowsbbs.com/showthread.php?t=67193

 

Thanks Reg i will try those. I did however fix the problem i set the server NIC to Full 100MB instead of Auto Negotiate. Putting it to 100MB Full just killed access to the server it made it soooooooo slow. Always put your NIC to Auto.

THANKS

 

I've seen the fix both ways. In my experience, Auto causes more problems than fixed (though it could be just that I only use manual settings when Auto fails).

The most bizarre example I had was with a network where all PC used 3Com NICs and we'd installed 3Com switches. We had all sorts of auto-negotiation problems. In desperation we swapped out the 3Com switches for Intel switches and all the problems disappeared. You'd normally expect auto-negotiate to fail between products from different manufacturers, but this was the other way round!

Those good old days when Intel 500 series switches were the answer to so many problems.