Hi Christian,
Welcome to the Forum!
Yes, home networking is indeed a big challenge, especially between W7 & W8. I have lots of Customers develop problems with that combo.
SHORT ANSWER: Yes, Delete your Homegroup from the W8 laptop and start over again! First, make sure to
BACKUP everything on both the PC and the laptop first!! Changing your networking setup can scramble network as well as Windows system file permissions.
LONG BORING ANSWER FULL OF VALUABLE INFORMATION: Don't bother reading this if you actually want to understand what's going on with your home network!
Here's a list of the common things that cause previously working networked computers to stop working:
1.) Perform an Upgrade to a newer version of Windows on 1 or all computers.
2.) Contract a virus or malware that scrambles your Windows networking files and keeps your network from working correctly.
3.) Download one of those free "driver fix-it" programs that offers to "speed-up" your PC and make it faster; instead it scrambles your network and sends copies of all the places you visit on the Internet to Hackers to use for who knows what and sell for $$.
4.) Add a new peripheral wireless device to your LAN such as a wifi printer or wifi webcam.
5.) Suffer a coincidental hardware failure such as a failed Hard Drive, RAM memory stick, or Motherboard. This of course happens more on laptops than desktops since they get dropped a lot more, like Cell phones since they often leave your home. Did you drop your W8 laptop recently??
So these are things that could cause your previously working network to
"magically" stop working! Interesting, huh? How does one go about narrowing this list down. Well, it takes some devoted troubleshooting, and lots of personal time. This is something that I can usually fix in 1 or 2 visits. But I also charge $100 per connected computer on the LAN to do so. It's complex, requires lots of expert knowledge and experience (I've been fixing LANs since 1980).
I would recommend you try these things in this order:
1.) After
BACKING UP ALL YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION TO EXTERNAL MEDIA FIRST, proceed to undo any recent Windows version upgrades, such as a W7-->W8 ugprade. So, if your laptop was originally W7, and you upgraded it to W8.1; you need to undo that; and redo your Homegroup networking and see if you can get it working again. If you can, then you can upgrade the laptop back to 8.1 and it should work.
2.) Scan for viruses with your built in AV program (Norton, Avast, McAfee, Comodo, etc.). Follow the instructions for removal and or quarrantine. Reset your Homegroup setup on both computers and retest.
3.) Go into
SAFE MODE on both PC & laptop, and remove any of these programs[driver fix-it or Registry cleaning programs] at once!! Reset your Homegroup setup on both computers and retest.
4.) Remove any and all new external wireless peripherals you've added in the last couple of months to your LAN, such as a wifi printer or wifi webcam. Reset your Homegroup setup on both computers and retest.
5.) Test your Hardware!! see below for what you need to do first:
5a.) Test your hardware; start with your Hard Drive; download free
SEATOOLS from seagate.com and run
BOTH short and long tests. If
SEATOOLS returns any errors, your hard drive has failed it must be replaced. Reset your Homegroup setup on both computers and retest.
5b.) Test your RAM memory by downloading free
MEMTEST (Google it), and run each RAM memory stick individually for a minimum of 8 passes. This may take up to 24 hrs. on sticks 4GB-8GB or larger. If
MEMTEST returns any errors, your RAM stick has failed and must be replaced. Repeat for each RAM stick in your computer or notebook, and then repeat again after all RAM sticks are reinserted into your computer. Reset your Homegroup setup on both computers and retest.
6.) If you get to this step, and have tested all these items, and replaced any faulty hardware found and it still doesn't work properly. You probably need to do one of two things: (1.) Perform drive wipes and complete Windows Reinstalls on both your PC and your laptop, and reset of all Homegroup networking setups; or (2.) Pay a professional networking Tech such as Best Buy Geek Squad to come out to your home and fix it. Be prepared for an initial charge of
$125-$165 for them to just walk through your door..more will be charged depending on how many hours or days it takes them to actually fix it. Be prepared for multiple visits.
Let us know how it goes, or if you have any specific questions. We are here to help 24x7x365. I usually try to answer all questions within 24 hrs., I am a volunteer and do have a life, but if I don't answer you, I've got quite a few well-versed technical colleagues hear who will jump in. If you don't hear back from me within 24 hrs., just bump your post.
Best of luck,
<<<BIGBEARJEDI>>>