How to enable or disable NetBIOS over TCP/IP in Windows 10

If you are looking for a way to enable or disable NetBIOS over TCP/IP in Windows 10, then you’ve come to the right place.

Follow are guick step-by-step guide on how to enable as well as disable NetBIOS on your Windows 10 PC over TCP/IP.

But before we dive into explaining the steps on how to do this, it will be wise for us to throw some light on what NetBIOS is all about in order for those who are hearing this term for teir very first time to get an idea of what NetBIOS is.

What is NetBIOS?

NetBIOS (Network Basic Input/Output System) is a program that allows applications on different computers to communicate within a local area network (LAN). It was created by IBM for its early PC Network, was adopted by Microsoft, and has since become a de facto industry standard.

NetBIOS over TCP/IP provides the NetBIOS programming interface over the TCP/IP protocol. It extends the reach of NetBIOS client and server programs to the wide-area network (WAN). It also provides interoperability with various other operating systems.

Enable or disable NetBIOS over TCP/IP in Windows 10

To disable or enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP on your Windows 10 computer will only depend on what you want to achieve.

For some,  in order to improve performance, it is recommended that you disable NetBIOS over TCP/IP on your cluster network NIC and other dedicated-purpose NICs, such as for iSCSI and Live Migration. NetBIOS isn’t used in Server 2008 R2 clusters.

That said, if you’d rather want to activate it, here we have the steps you’ll need to follow. Also, for those who already have it enabled, we’ve also provided a guide on how to disable NetBIOS Over TCP/IP/

Enabling or disabling NetBIOS Over TCP/IP on Windows 10

• From your Windows 10 computer, go to the search box and search and launch the “control panel”
• Once in the control panel, go to “Internet & Network” then “network and sharing center“.

Alternatively, simply right-click on the Network (desktop icon) next to the battery on the taskbar and click on “Open Network and sharing center” and select the Network for which you want to enable or disable NetBIOS over TCP/IP.

• After selecting the Local Area Connection or whatever your connection name is, click on it and then select “Properties” from the popup windows.

• Next, select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP / IPv4).
• Next, click on the Advanced button, then in the new settings box, select the WINS tab.
• Select Enable or Disable NetBIOS over TCP / IP.

Disable NetBIOS on the DHCP server

1. Click on the Start button > Programs >Administrative Tools, and then select DHCP.
2. In the navigation pane, expand the server_name, expand Scope, right-click Scope Options, and select Configure Options.
3. Select the Advanced tab, and then select the Server Name Option in the Vendor class list.
4. Make sure that Default User Class is selected in the User class list.
5. Select the 001 Microsoft Disable Netbios Option check box under the Available Options column.
6. In the Data entry area, type 0x2 in the Long box, and then select OK.

Note in Step 2; the server_name placeholder specifies the name of the DHCP server.