How do you share files between Windows 7 and Windows XP?

I have shared folders on both my Windows 7 and Windows XP laptops. How can I find these from either OS? Ordinarily I would just enter \\hostname\ into explorer, but this doesn't seem to work. I can ping the hostname from both machines, but not browse to it from explorer.

Solution 1:

1. It should be \\hostname (two slashes)
2. Enable file and printer sharing
3. Ensure that the firewall allows firewall and printer sharing
4. A common scenario I have encountered is AV/Firewall software like Norton will block SMB traffic regardless of the Windows firewall. Make sure this is configured correctly as well.

You may find it helpful to diagnose by turning on public folder sharing, this eliminates authentication issues.

Solution 2:

Taspeotis has said pretty much what I would of.

In addition, if this is a one off thing, you may want to look at installing Filezilla as it is a good way of just getting a file from one machine to another quick without having to worry about Windows sharing and/or permissions. (Only problem that sometimes comes up is usually firewall).