Share files across devices

To let users access a specific folder from a computer or an iOS device, you designate that folder as a shared folder.

You must enable file sharing before you can designate shared folders. Some folders are enabled as shared folders by default. These are indicated in Settings in the File Sharing pane of the Server app.

1. To add a new shared folder, click Add  at the bottom of the Settings pane.

2. Navigate to your chosen volume or folder.

3. Click Choose.

4. If you wish, change the name that users see when choosing the shared folder, then click OK.

   1. In the File Sharing pane, select the shared folder in the list.

   2. Double-click the selected folder, or click Edit .

   3. Enter a new name to change how users see the folder.

5. For added security, select “Encrypt connections” to encrypt the network connection between the users and the shared folder.

Turn on file sharing, if it isn’t already on.

You can enable or disable access to each shared folder listed in the File Sharing pane of the Server app. You can give access to all users with accounts on your server, or only the specific users and groups you select to have read and write access to each shared folder and its contents. Also, you can allow guest access for any shared folder.

Turn on file sharing if it isn’t already on.

1. Before you set any folder permissions, decide who gets to use the service, and from which network.

   See Server access overview.

2. In the File Sharing pane, select the shared folder in the list.

3. Double-click the selected folder or click Edit .

4. To change the access users or groups have to a shared folder and its contents, select Read & Write, Read Only, Write Only, or No Access next to that user or group name, then change it to the needed access level.

   You can also add or delete users and groups that have access to a shared folder by clicking Add  or Remove .

   ACLs are automatically propogated through the folders.

5. To let users access a folder without logging in, select the “Allow guest users to access this share” checkbox.

The access level changes the next time the user or group connects to the shared folder.

File Sharing service in OS X Server lets you specify a protocol that other computers or devices use to access your file shares. Disabling or enabling certain protocols lets you determine which kinds of computers or devices connect to your server.

Turn on file sharing if it isn’t already on.

1. In the File Sharing pane, select the shared folder in the list.

2. Double-click the selected folder or click Edit .

3. Select the checkboxes for sharing over SMB, AFP, or WebDAV.

   If you want to use a file share as a home folder, enable SMB or AFP as appropriate.

   You can select one or all three file sharing protocols for any share. If you don’t select any protocol, the file share becomes unavailable.

Users need to log out and log in again before using the shared folder as their home folder.

Computers on the same network as your file sharing server can store users’ home folders in shared folders on the server. After you designate which shared folders can contain users’ home folders, you can choose a shared folder as the location of one or more users’ home folders. When those users log in to their computers, they begin using their network home folders located in the shared folder on your server.

1. In the File Sharing pane, select the shared folder in the list.

2. Double-click the folder, or click Edit .

3. Select the “Make available for home directories over” checkbox.

4. Choose SMB for Mac and Windows computers or AFP for Mac computers only, depending on the type of computers people use to connect to your file sharing server.

After making shared folders available for users’ home folders, you need to choose one as each user’s home folder location. For instructions, see Choose a user’s home folder location. Users need to log out and log in again before using the shared folder as their home folder.