XP Home SP2 OEM "Use Simple File Sharing" is not available

In a fresh installation of XP Home SP2 OEM on a new hard drive, there is no
option for Use Simple File Sharing under Folder Options: View: Advanced
Settings.

By default, Simple File Sharing is enabled in Home, and that seems to be
functional. But I wanted to turn off Simple File Sharing and make fuller
use of Permissions for a temporary situation.

The Server service is running, by the way.

Is there another way to fix this - a Registry mod, for instance? I didn't
find anythign in the Knowledgebase.

--John Hupp

John Hupp wrote:

> In a fresh installation of XP Home SP2 OEM on a new hard drive, there is no
> option for Use Simple File Sharing under Folder Options: View: Advanced
> Settings.
>
> By default, Simple File Sharing is enabled in Home, and that seems to be
> functional. But I wanted to turn off Simple File Sharing and make fuller
> use of Permissions for a temporary situation.
>
> The Server service is running, by the way.
>
> Is there another way to fix this - a Registry mod, for instance? I didn't
> find anythign in the Knowledgebase.

Well, that's what you get in the crippled version of Professional called
Home Edition: less features. In Home, you have to reboot into Safe Mode
to log into an admin-level account to get at those privileges.
Permissions is an administrator function. You don't get to login under
an admin-level account except in Safe Mode when using the Home Edition
of Windows XP.

Read http://support.microsoft.com/kb/304040/en-us where it says,
"Windows XP Home Edition-based computers always have Simple File Sharing
enabled" and "Simple File Sharing is always turned on in Windows XP Home
Edition-based computers".

You said, "By default, Simple File Sharing is enabled in Home." WRONG.
By default, Simple File Sharing is enabled in Professional and can be
disabled. You don't get a choice in Home Edition where it is ALWAYS on
except under an admin-level account (which requires rebooting into Safe
Mode).