"workgroup" vs. "my network"

[putz3000]

I just discovered something that is a bit baffling although I have a theory. I have a mac server that stores files created by an application running on an OS9 mac. The names are rather big (pipetext12/30/2008*11*0000-z). Actually, the "*" is actually a round dot centered - so a special character.

What the pc sees is something like: PJBKYQ~Y. I recently snagged a mac for my desktop and connected to the server thinking I would see it as the pipetext file name but i didn't, I saw it the same way as the pc sees it. After working with one of the mac users in the office, we discovered that it is contingent on how you connect the server to the mac. If I connect my mac to the server using the server connection listed under workgroup then it sees things like a pc would. It can't even see a mac built alias - it sees those as an unrecognizable file format. But if I connect using the server connection under "my network" everything looks like it should. Even the alias is recognized.

My theory is that when connecting through "workgroup", the mac is using windows protocols but when connecting through "my network" it is using mac protocols. Am I even slightly on the right track? Why is this, does this allow you to connect a mac to a windows based network share that does not have any mac protocols running?

[ElDiabloConCaca]

That sounds spot-on to me. You're probably connecting via SMB or CIFS (the "Windows-native" protocols) when you see the truncated names. You're probably connecting via AppleTalk and/or AFP (the "Apple-native" protocols) when you see full-length names.

Yes, you can connect a Mac to a server in a number of different ways: SMB, FTP, AFP, AppleTalk, NFS, WebDAV, etc. Each protocol does something different in terms of communication and supports different transport mechanisms, which is why sometimes you see truncated file names and sometimes you don't.

If you're using OS X, then you can specify which protocol to use when connecting. Press Command-K in the Finder (or select Go > Connect to Server...), and then enter the server's IP address or name prefixed by the protocol connection scheme you wish to use. For example, if you wanted to connect to the server via AFP and the server's IP address is 192.168.0.1, then you would type:

afp://192.168.0.1

in the "Connect to Server" window, or simply:

192.168.0.1

(because AFP is the "assumed" protocol in the "Connect to Server" window.

If you wanted to connect via SMB, then you would type:

smb://192.168.0.1

Off-topic, but it's gotta be a PITA to press shift-8 before each sentence, no? What's up with the asterisks? Am I supposed to read each sentence as if it were a footnote?

[putz3000]

good grief, I didn't even see those stinking astrics through out. Not sure what caused that. Now that is bugging me too and I will have to fix it..lol.

Thank you for explaining things, you might have also inadvertently gave me a clue to another vexing issue I have had.

[Satcomer]

You may would want to take a look at the article Phase 2 – Accessing Server Resources.