I have been working on setting up samba all day. I am a beginner with linux. Ive used it before but went 2 years without really touching it so now im a little lost. If it was anything to do with active directory it would be cake but in a linux environment im lost.
To get things started I used apt-get install samba samba-client and used the wizard to configure it. I set up encrypted passwords and created a user with a smbpasswd and created a folder and set up the share in the conf file. Did everything according to a how-to that was very straightforward online. I got on my windows machine typed in the server name and the share name and got a prompt for a username and password. No matter what i tried i couldnt get in. I changed settings and at one point got in. Then it stopped working. I changed the confg around a few more times and I think i just made it worse. I created the /home/samba directory and edited the config file to allow my user to navagate to this. I try accessing it via the IP of the machine, the computer name, and my network places and each way i get a message saying I might not have permission and "the account is not authorized to log on from this station". My smb.conf file is as follows:

[global]
guest account = nobody
workgroup = BEERFV
server string = %h BeerserverFV (Samba %v)
dns proxy = yes
username map = /etc/samba/smbusers
encrypt passwords = no
passdb backend = tdbsam guest
obey pam restrictions = yes

passwd program = /usr/bin/passwd %u

[homes]
comment = home directories
browseable = yes

[samba]
path=/home/samba
browseable = yes
writeable = yes
public = yes
create mask = 0777
directory mask = 0777
force user = nobody
force group = nogroup
guest ok = no


This is the 100th version of the config file...ive tried alot and with this last one i was hoping by everyone permissions it would at least let me in but it doesnt even give me an authentication window. What could be wrong?

Hmm a lot of stuff unfamiliar to me personally in there, but here is what I use as regards a samba config file that does exactly what you want - my Windows users have anonymous (passwordless) read and write access to the share on my Linux box:

[global]

netbios name = stefan
workgroup = GOEDEHOOP10
security = share
log file = /var/log/samba.log
log level = 1
socket options = TCP_NODELAY IPTOS_LOWDELAY SO_RCVBUF=16384 SO_SNDBUF=16384
wins support = yes
domain logons = no
logon drive = f:
logon home = \\stefan\%U
os level = 99
preferred master = yes
local master = yes
hosts allow = 169.254.255.10 169.254.255.11 169.254.255.20 169.254.255.30 127.0.0.1 169.254.255.40 169.254.255.50 169.254.255.60 169.254.255.70 169.254.255.80
encrypt passwords = yes
browseable = yes
lanman auth = yes
lm announce = yes

[shared]
path = /mnt/win/shared
guest ok = yes
writeable = yes
create mode = 0666
directory mode = 0777
browseable = yes
public = yes


Note that lost of stuff you have I don't... maybe the defaults should work better for you (since I make use of defaults - of course- for all options I don't specify above).

Why don't you try the above config file? This works fine for me on FC3 with a 2.6.14.3 kernel with Samba 3.0.20a...

Awsome man thanks...that worked for me