I've never explicitly installed Samba in Ubuntu, I just right-click on a folder
and say Share it, and if it's right after I installed Ubuntu, Samba gets
installed. I have several computers, and always have a shared folder. I have
never had it fail. I have no idea if anything along the lines of samba-admin is
installed on my computer.

I use DHCP except for my printer. I don't share root, and I don't password
protect my shared folders.

My wife and step-son use Windows, because there is no Linux version of QQ, the
most popular Chinese Skype-like program. They also have shared folders and can
see my shared folders.

I appreciate that you've taken the time to share your
experiences. Unfortunately you can't help me as you are not a Kubuntu user.

I've actually asked this question before - and got no response at all.
Surely there must be someone here who uses Samba on Kubuntu? I'd try NFS but
read that it was even more complicated than Samba. I've made Windows
networking and NetWare (on a 100+ node network) work but this has me
stumped.

Its it to much to expect reliable file sharing on Kubuntu? I hope not. I
need help from a Kubuntu user.

Looking on the Gadmin tools web site it appears that gsamba for
Mandriva/Debian is no more and they only support Fedora/RedHat. At
least the link to download is gone.

The latest version is 0.3.1 but only available as RPM download. Alien
might be able to convert to a Deb for install into your Kubuntu ?

Since Gadmin causes problems it's time to look for an alternative in
your Kubuntu if you can't get the latest version installed via Alien
??

Thanks, that does shed some light on the situation... the Gadmin tools
are still in the (K)Ubuntu repositories but that doesn't mean they are
still being updated, or guaranteed. I've looked up Smb4K and am trying
it, however the situation is still murky in my mind. I just assumed
that good, solid, reliable, easy to use networking tools was a
capability long ago built into Kubuntu/Ubuntu. Seems to be much more
of a challenge than I had hoped.

Given that I really want to continue with Kubuntu, can anyone suggest
an easier way to set up and share things that Samba with Gadmin-samba?

I really hope there is, or our favourite operating system is not
competitive with Windows in that important area. Or am I the only one
here who wants to be able to access all the files on all the drives on
all the computers from each machine? Am I asking too much? Hate to say
it, but I did so on Windows and Netware for years as an Administrator
easily with minimum downtime.

Must admit I've found sharing via IP address to be more reliable and
easier to set up overall - i.e. using 'Connect to server / Custom
location' with location smb://IP Address/Folder and selecting the tick
box 'Add Bookmark'.

I think that the same system is there in Kubuntu but Roy is the big
Kubuntu user around here so he'll know

could you share your experiences with file sharing on Kubuntu? I'd
really appreciate some help.

I would but I don't need to share files, so have not had to set it up. My
wife and I have separate computers. She does not use my Linux boxes and I
don't touch her Windows box. I store most data on usb external drives. My
wife uses a board file server or a usb key to move her own files between
home and work.
The secret of a long and happy marriage. :-)
I used samba previously but that was years so on KDE 3.5.
Wish I could be of more help than a marriage tip.