Windows Tricks: Hiding The Entire Computer From Network Neighborhood
It may be useful at times to prevent a particular computer from appearing in such 'My Network Places' or similar groups. Note that it can only be kind of convenience, a privacy option,not a security measure.
A simple way to hide share names from browsers is to prepend these with a dollar shares. Such a share can be used, but it would never be seen in a browser,adding kind of privacy. However, on can also to make the entire computer 'invisible' to others. To achieve that, open a command-line prompt and type
net config server /hidden:{yes|no}
('yes' to hide, 'no' to reveal). This is the simplest means to toggle visibility state.
Please note that, even though the computer can't be seen in a Browser, it can be directly connected via \\computername style address (UNC path), the same affects all the 'hidden' shares mentioned.
Once again: that should not be referred as a good security practice; use password protection to make the defense actual.
You can create administrative or hidden shares on a network by preceding share names of folders with a dollar sign. This prevents users from seeing the shared folder when browsing the computer’s shares in My Network Places or Network. However, if you want to prevent users from even seeing an icon for the computer, you can use the net config server command.
To toggle a computer’s visibility on the network, open a Command Prompt window and type:
net config server /hidden:{yes|no}
You can still directly access the computer on the network with the UNC path, such as by typing \\computername into a web browser or window.
This article was brought to you by the developers of IPHost Network Monitor, network and server monitoring software.