Technology Notebook

Browstat.exe is a microsoft command line tool that was originally provided as part of the Windowss 2000 support tools. Browstat.exe is the secret weapon that Windows sysadmins use to troubleshoot NetBIOS browsing problems. While it is no longer supported by Microsoft on current windows platforms it still works and if you have NetBIOS on your network you should make sure that you have a copy. NetBIOS is a ubiquitous part of the windows networking realm – any programs that allow users to browse the network for printers or computers or map drives, are generally using NetBIOS browsing.  Browstat.exe lets the system and/or network administrator quickly determine the primary cause of a browsing problem.

Microsoft example

Microsoft has an excellent write-up and examples of how to use Browstat.exe on its support site: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/188305/, so I am not going to reproduce how to install, configure and test the installation in this post.  Actually for most windows environments there is no need to install anything, just extract browstat.exe from the cab file and run it. You should have at least some basic knowledge of how NetBIOS browsing works in order to use this effectively. This is not a tool for everyday use but when you have a network browsing problem this tool is your single best  opportunity to quickly resolve the problem.

NetBIOS is a relic from the early days of computer networking. While the internet existed when personal computers first started to become networked. Microsoft, with a severe case of NIH syndrome and urged on by computer manufacturers wanting to sell more (proprietary) hardware, took a look TCP/IP networking and rolled its own twisted version. The DNS HOSTS file became LMHOSTS; DNS became WINS and Netbios became the protocol for LAN’s instead of TCP/IP (or that IPX/SPX stuff that the upstart Novell was pushing). Of course the internet became even bigger and ethernet along with TCP/IP replaced Token ring, Arcnet, DecNet, SNA and other forgettable protocols. Microsoft of course responded by putting Netbios on top of TCP/IP (so there) and we still live with this today.

You’ve got to give Microsoft some credit for persistence – where Apple just says the new world is X and forget your Appletalk. Microsoft says the new world is 7 (but no worries we’ll still run your 1980 era LanManger if you insist). We thus, wind up with DNS, WINS, HOSTS, LMHOSTS, domains, workgroups, Browse-Master and so on all trying to co-exist and even interact with each other. When they don’t interact we find that we can ping a computer but not map a drive or we can map a drive or access a server using UNC (\comptername ), but cannnot browse the network using network neighborhood: Even when things work reasonably well in a LAN environment remember that Netbios is at heart a LAN protocol whereas TCP/IP had its origins as a WAN protocol.

When you throw things like NAT addressing into the mix (as 99percent of LAN’s do) then Netbios does not always work – its protocols are often blocked at the firewall (network_ discovery_LAN = GOOD;  network_discovery_internet = BAD) and routers and firewalls have not always had a good track record of translating NAT IP addresses inside Netbios packets (NBT) and are more likely to break.