How do I get Vista to share WiFi via LAN with 9x clients?

[bizzybody]

I have a laptop running Vista Ultimate SP1 with a WiFi connection to a DSL router. I cannot change anything on the router.

I've had a desktop running XP Pro SP3 hooked up to the laptop's ethernet and it was a simple matter of bridging the laptop's wireless and ethernet, the XP desktop's built in ethernet automatically adapted to using a standard cable as a crossover. Got all Windows updates and more downloaded, no problems.

I figured it'd be as simple with this old Compaq Armada 7380DMT laptop with a 3Com CardBus 56K/10/100 combo card and a 10/100 switch added in the middle. No way! The laptop has NO USB, the only ways to get stuff onto it is via floppy disk or CD-R, the drive can't read CD-RW- and ethernet if I can make Vista stop snubbing the olde thing.

Vista is apparently not automatically assigning IP's to Windows 95. I've searched for hours and found lots of other people attempting to use a Vista box to share a connection to Windows 9x or even Me.

I un-bridged the laptop's connections then turned on Sharing on the WiFi. I've tried manually assigning IP's etc for the ethernet on both laptops. So far nothing I've tried has made the two communicate.

Never had such problems getting 2000 or XP to share a connection to 9x clients, and get one-way file sharing where I could 'push' stuff to 9x from 2000 or XP. A simple matter of sharing the host's internet connection, leaving the ethernet on automatic all around and sharing a drive on the 9x/Me client. SIMPLE! Vista, NOT simple.

[bizzybody]

Vista suddenly decided that it was not, no way, no how going to have ICS enabled on the WiFi connection. It'd just give me the useless message that "An error has occurred..." not even an error number.

So I tried bridging it again with the laptop's ethernet, then I ran Winipcfg on the Win95 laptop, hit Renew and instantly got an IP!

That worked for about 10 minutes before Vista cut off all connection to the Win95 laptop. I was able to get to windows update and start downloading what's still there for Win95.

Now Winipcfg can't get an IP from the Vista laptop.

Where's the "SharethisconnectiongawdammituntilIsayotherwise!" checkbox?

[bizzybody]

Finally got it to work. I manually assigned an IP to TCP/IP bound to the NIC on the 95 laptop because somehow it was getting assigned the *same IP* as the bridged connection on Vista, which I still have as automatically assigned.

I also had to enter 192.168.0.1 (IP of the wireless router) AND another DNS address AND a domain suffix. FINALLY it could get internet access.

But NOW Vista refuses to copy any files to the shared drive on the 95 laptop, which is shared with FULL access and NO PASSWORD, claiming I "need permission". Vista also refuses to explore the shared 95 drive below the root level. 2000 and XP had no problem with this, even while they wouldn't allow access the other way.

Since when does setting up a Win9x share with *no security at all* mean another PC "needs permission" to access it?

Microsoft has royally screwed up networking in Vista. I've been working with PCs, DOS and Windows, for almost 27 years and I've never seen anything so effing stupid.