WINS Manager Displays Dots Instead of Sixteenth Character

 Last reviewed: December 22, 1997
Article ID: Q176318
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server version 3.5, 3.51, 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you view your Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) database in the Show Database dialog box of WINS Manager, there may be a series of three dots instead of the normal sixteenth character hexadecimal identifier.

For example: 

   Server1...
whereas you would normally see: 

   Server1[20h]
NOTE: This does not cause name resolution problems for clients using the same NetBIOS Scope.

CAUSE

You configured your WINS Server with a NetBIOS Scope in the TCP/IP Properties.

Resolution

This issue is strictly a display problem and does not provide any name resolution problems. To view the complete WINS entries, you will need to do one of the following:

  • Disable the NetBIOS Scope identifier on the WINS Server.

    -or-

  • Use Winsdump.exe or Winscl.exe from the Windows NT Server Resource Kit to view your WINS information.

For additional information, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 

   ARTICLE-ID: Q142302
   TITLE     : Information About the WINSDMP.EXE Utility

   ARTICLE-ID: Q137582
   TITLE     : Using WINSCL.EXE

MORE INFORMATION

Your WINS Server stores the NetBIOS name with the hex value as the sixteenth character. The entry has the NetBIOS Scope appended to the sixteen characters.

NOTE: Using a NetBIOS Scope improperly can result in failure to establish trusts between domains, and loss of connectivity. 

Keywords          : ntnetserv NTSrv kbnetwork
Version           : WinNT:3.5,3.51,4.0
Platform          : winnt
Hardware          : ALPHA PPC x86
Issue type        : kbprb
Solution Type     : kbworkaround

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Last reviewed: December 22, 1997
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