How To Share files between Windows and Mac OS
Sharing removable storage devices between Macs and PCs can be tricky because of their manually incompatible native file systems, but things are much easier with both computers connected to the same network. Mac OS and Windows support a file sharing protocol called SMB, which acts independently of the underlying file system. As long as SMB access is properly configured, a Mac can access the contents of a PC’s hard disk across a network with the minimum of fuss. Here we explain how to set up cross-platform file shares for Mac OS X and Windows XP, Vista and 7 using standard features of each operating system. The only potential pitfall is that Mac OS supports a wider range of characters in file and folder names than Windows, and Mac filenames that contain a’+’ sign or asterisk will confuse a PC. we’ve used computer names to access network shares, as they never change, unlike the dynamic local IP addresses used by home networks. Computer names are easier to identify, but IP addresses can be a more reliable way of connecting to a remote computer. if you have problems connecting to a remote Mac or PC using its name, substitute its IP address, so ‘iMac’ becomes ‘192,168.1.18’. You’ll see the Mac’s IP address for share access in the dialog for Step 2. For Windows, use IPCONFIG in a command prompt window to find it.
1:
To access files stored on a Mac using Windows, start by setting up file sharing on the Mac. Select System Preferences from the Apple menu, click Sharing. When the dialog box options, ensure that an easily identifiable Computer Name is provided in the field at the top and File Sharing is enabled in the column of Services on the left. Select the File Sharing service, then click the ‘+’ button below the Shared Folders field to browse for a folder to Share.
2:
Once a folder is selected for sharing, three entries will appear in the Users field, with access permission for each. Only the first User (your Mac login User name) is used for file sharing with Windows; the other two can be ignored. You may want to change the access permissions of Staff (all user accounts on this Mac, apart from the Guest account) and Everyone (all other Macs on the network to avoid exposing your files to other Mac users. you can share multiple sub folders rather than one parent folder to help with security) just repeat Step 1 for each folder you want to access from Windows.
3:
With user permission set appropriately for each folder, click the Options button. When the dialog box appears, enable the Share files and folders using the SMB option and , if the Share files and folders using AFP option is enabled, disable it unless you also want to share files across the network with other Macs. You’ll also need to enable you Mac user account for SMB sharing in the box below this, and confirm by entering your Mac login password. Click the Done button to close this dialog box and quit System Preferences.
4:
To access the shared Mac folder from within Windows, open an Explorer window and type \\ (from Step 1) in the address bar. Press Return and wait for a connection. You’ll the be prompted to enter your Mac user name and password, after which you’ll have access to your shares.
5:
The process of accessing Windows shares from a Mac is slightly different in XP, Vista and 7. Right-Click on My Computer and select Properties to see the computer name. Open an Explorer window to find the folder you want to share. In XP, right-click the folder, select Sharing and Security to see the Sharing setting and then enable ‘share this folder on the network’, In Vista, right-click the folder, choose Share… and click the Share button without entering a user name. In Windows 7, right-click and choose Share with then Specific people… and click the Share button without choosing an user name. Windows Vista and 7 require the active Windows user account to be password-protected for sharing to work.
6:
To open the Windows share on the Mac access the Desktops Go menu and select the Connect to Server option. Enter the Server address as smb;\\ (see Step 5) and click the Connect button. For Windows Vista and 7 share, enter the user name and password for the Windows user account; you can just use Guest for Windows XP (unless you specified otherwise in its share set-up). Click Connect and the share will be mounted.
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