SOLVED: Windows Computer Browser Service is Disabled or Missing

To get to the point quickly, the reason why the Computer Browser service is disable because it is deprecated.

The computer browser service in windows computers used to be a little program that ran on windows computers by default that would seek out other computers on the network and compile a list. back in the 90s this was really useful but unfortunately it relied on SMB version 1.0. SMB (Server Message Block) is a protocol used to move things like files around a network. Unfortunately, in 1996 when SMB 1.0 was built security was not a concern.

Before you go bashing Microsoft, know that IBM actually created SMBv1. SMBv2 came out in 2006 and SMBv3, which is today’s standard, came out in 2012. However, the Computer Browser service was never updated to use these new more secure versions of SMB so you really shouldn’t be using it. It is dangerous in today’s world of sophisticated hackers.

Active Directory replaced the Computer Browser Service for domain joined computers what back in Windows 2000. In today’s world modern windows computers use the Function Discovery Provider service To let you know what Computers are on your network.

If you want to be able to expand THIS PC > NETWORK and see the other computers on your network, do not start the Computer Browser service but instead start the Function discovery provider host and the Function discovery resource publication services and set them to run automatically.

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