Can't ping Windows 10 PC

Question

While trying to solve a more complicated networking problem, I noticed that for some reason I was getting no response to a ping from my Windows 10 computer. I read that it might be a problem with the firewall in Windows, so I temporarily disabled it entirely for private and public networks in Control Panel. It didn't help.

On this Windows in Wireshark on the interface I see packets like this:

What could be the problem?

Answer 1

On the Windows 10 PC, Network Discovery is probably disabled. It will drop every package it receives and won't respond. To turn Network Discovery on:

1. Open the Control Panel (for example, by searching the Start menu).
2. Under "Network and Internet", click on "View network status and tasks".
3. On the left sidebar, click "Change advanced sharing settings".
4. Select "Turn on network discovery" for the desired profiles. Look for the label "current profile" for the active network connection.

Answer 2

I also had a Windows 10 PC that wouldn't respond to pings. Network discovery was on. However, after poking a bit I realized that somehow the Network had gotten switched to a public network. (This is a hardwired desktop PC that never moves or changes networks, so I'm not sure how this happened.) And of course I didn't have network discover enabled for Public networks.

My solution was to change the network back to Private, and now all is well. I feel like the steps to do this change often, but here is what I did:

1. Click on the Network icon in the tray.
2. Click on my currently connected network.
3. Click Status on the left.
4. Click Properties.
5. Change Network Profile to Private.

Answer 3

I had Portmaster (an application firewall) running. As soon as I closed it, my Macbook pinged my PC instantly.

Other things I tried that are worthwhile:

1. Ensure your PC's subnet mask matches the one set in your router.
2. Disable your devices' firewalls to see if that's where the issue is.
3. Use a static IP for the device you're trying to ping, to eliminate indeterminacy.
4. Follow these steps from the Windows site:

• Update Windows. Ensuring all machines are as updated as they can be is key to making sure you aren't missing out on any driver or Windows updates.

• Make sure the computers are on the same network. For example, if your computers connect to the internet through a wireless router, make sure they all connect through the same wireless router.

• If you're on a Wi-Fi network, set it to Private. To find out how, read Make a Wi-Fi network public or private in Windows.

• Turn on network discovery and file and printer sharing, and turn off password protected sharing.

  Select the Start button, then select Settings > Network & internet , and on the right side, select Sharing options.

  Under Private, select Turn on Network discovery and Turn on file and printer sharing.

  Under All Networks, select Turn off password protected sharing.

• Make sharing services start automatically.

  Press the Windows logo key + R.

  In the Run dialog box, type services.msc, and then select OK.

  Right-click each of the following services, select Properties, if they're not running, select Start, and next to Startup type, select Automatic:

    Function Discovery Provider Host
  
    Function Discovery Resource Publication
  
    SSDP Discovery
  
    UPnP Device Host