Dear CokerDr1,
Hello! Welcome to the Microsoft Community.
It looks like your Windows 11 PC can't connect to your Windows 10 PC, but other Windows 10 PCs can connect to Windows 11 PCs. I understand your feelings and I will try to help you.
You can try the following methods to try to solve this problem:
- Check network discovery settings
Make sure your Windows 11 PC's network discovery and file sharing settings are correct.
Open Control Panel (press Win + R, type control, and then press Enter).
Select Network and Sharing Center.
Click Change advanced sharing settings on the left.
In the Private (current network) section, make sure the following options are enabled:
Turn on network discovery.
Turn on file and printer sharing.
Click Save changes.
- Check sharing settings
Make sure your Windows 11 computer allows sharing of files and folders:
Right-click the folder you want to share and select Properties.
Go to the Sharing tab, click the Share button and select the users you want to share with or select Everyone.
Make sure Allow other computers on the network to access this folder is checked.
- Disable the firewall or configure firewall exceptions
Sometimes Windows Firewall can block connections between devices. You can try disabling the firewall temporarily to see if that fixes the problem.
Press Win + X and select Windows Security.
Click Firewall and network protection and select Private network or Public network.
Select Turn off Windows Firewall (for testing only, make sure to re-enable after testing).
If disabling the firewall solves the problem, you can configure firewall exceptions:
Open Control Panel > Windows Defender Firewall > Allow an app through firewall.
Make sure the File and Printer Sharing option is checked.
- Enable SMB 1.0
Windows 11 does not enable the SMB 1.0 protocol by default, which may affect connections with older Windows devices. Try enabling it:
Open Control Panel > Programs > Turn Windows features on or off.
Enable SMB 1.0/CIFS file sharing support.
Restart your computer.
- Check IP address and subnet settings
Make sure all computers are on the same subnet and there are no IP address conflicts.
Open Command Prompt (Press Win + R, type cmd, and press Enter).
Type ipconfig and press Enter. Make sure the IP addresses of all devices are in the same range (for example, 192.168.1.x).
Please let me know your progress. If the problem persists, please check if there are any permissions or security policy restrictions between devices.
Best Wishes
Pyke.D | Microsoft Community Support Specialist