Sharing files between a Windows Vista Home Edition PC and a Mac running OS X Leopard 10.5
You can use the following procedure to share files between a Windows PC running Windows Vista Home Edition and a Mac running OS X Leopard 10.5.
Both computers may need to have their firewalls turned off if you are using a router you will have a hardware firewall, or you can have the relevant ports opened. These ports are 548, 427 and 139.
Stage 1 Ensure all computers are on the same subnet
Ensure that first each of the computers can access your network. Ensure that the IP address of each computer shares the same subnet, ie 10.0.1.x or 192.168.0.x or whatever! Also write down the IP address of both the Mac and the PC.
How do I find a Vista Home Edition PC's IP address?
How do I find a Mac running Leopard 10.5's IP address?
Stage 2 Usernames and Passwords
It really helps with the Windows PC to have a user account with a username and a password and to know the shortname and password associated with the Mac.
How do I find my Mac (OS X) shortname?
Creating a new user account on Windows Vista
If you want to make it very easy to share both home directories (all files) of both the Mac and the PC, it really helps if the usernames and passwords match on both the PC and the Mac.
If you don't require users to need a password to access the shared folder on the Vista PC then turn off password protected sharing.
Stage 3 Setting up Mac File Sharing
On the Mac
System Preferences -> Sharing
Ensure that File Sharing is checked.
At this basic level only the Mac user's Public Folder will be available. You can in Leopard specify specific folders and whether users can only read files or can write to the folder.
To add a folder click the + button under Shared Folders.
Navigate to the folder you wish to share and click the Add button.
At this level no user except a user using the Mac user's credentials will be able to access the folder.
To change access rights use the up and down arrows to the right of the access rights.
To add specific people, click the + button under Users to specify who can access this shared folder and whether they have read and write rights over the folder.
This will bring up access to your Address Book.
Click New Person
Add the Windows username and password, click Create Account. The select the account in the Address Book pane and then click the Select button.
You now need to allow SMB access to the folder or folders you wish to share. Click the Options... button.
This will bring up the options dialogue.
Check the SMB check box.
If you wish to share your entire user account you will need to check the On chekcbox for the account and enter that account's password.
In this example I am going to make my Downloads folder available on a read only basis to Everyone.
Stage 4 Setting up PC File Sharing
On the Windows PC, Start -> Control Panel
This will bring up the following window.
Click on Set up file sharing.
This will bring up the Network and Sharing Centre.
This window should be showing you the network to which the computer is connected (in this example it is my local area network, and that this is a home and private network.
We are going to share a folder with a specific user, if we want to share files with everyone then it is advised to use and turn on Public folder sharing.
Another option is if you don't require users to need a password to access the shared folder then turn off password protected sharing.
As you can see File sharing is currently Off. Click the downward arrow on the right to change File sharing from Off to On.
Check the Turn on file sharing radio button.
Click the Apply button and file sharing is now turned on.
Though you have now turned on file sharing, you now need to identify which folders you wish to share. Use Explorer to navigate to the folder containing the folder you wish to share.
Select the folder you wish to share, a Share icon and menu item will appear.
Click the Share menu item, you now be asked to identify who you wish to share the folder with. In this example I am sharing my Documents folder.
Click the arrow on the drop down box and you will be given a list of users on the Windows Vista PC. In this example I have already created a Windows Vista PC user account which matches my Mac's shortname and password.
I can now add ifelix to my list of people I wish to share this folder with, I can also set the permission level to allow ifelix just to read the folder or to have read write rights over the folder.
Click the Share button, this brings up the following screen.
The link indicated in the dialogue only applies to other Windows users and will not work on a Mac.
Stage 5 Sharing Files Mac to PC
On the Mac using Finder
Finder -> Go -> Connect to Server
You will now see the Connect To Serve window.
Now you can try entering the Vista PC's name, but generally you will have more success with using the PC's IP address.
How do I find a Vista Home Edition PC's IP address?
Type in smb://IP Address of PC
example smb://192.168.0.61
Click the + button for Finder to remember this location.
Click Connect
It will then attempt to connect to the PC
You will then be asked to authenticate. The Mac will put in your Mac shortname.
Do not try and connect as a Guest as this only works with other Macs.
You need to use the Windows username and password you created earlier (or the PC's account), NOT your Mac shortname and password.
Check the Remember this password in my keychain box to avoid having to enter the password again.
If it is successful you will see the following and will ask you to Select the SMB/CIFS shared volume you want to connect to. Select the Users share and click OK.
Your shared user folder from the PC will then be mounted on the Mac Desktop and will be available in Finder.
If you double click the relevant user folder, in this example ifelix you will then be able to access the documents, pictures from the PC on your Mac.
However if I click the Administrator's folder I can find the Documents folder which they are sharing.
Stage 6 Sharing Files PC to Mac
On the Windows PC, Start -> Network
This will bring up the following window which will list all the computers on the home network.
In this window you can see various computers on my network. The Vista PC PELAGIA which is the PC you are on! An 802.11n Airport Extreme base station 802-11N-AIRPORT (which has hard drive sharing capability, like a card reader on a printer so it turns up), various other computers and the Mac I want to access, which is named IFELIXS-IMAC.
You may find initially that the Vista PC can only find itself.
If this is the case either wait a minute or two and then click refresh.
Double click the named Mac, in this example IFELIXS-IMAC and you should now see the following screen.
The downloads folder is accessible as are the Mac users' public folders. You can drop files into the Drop Box in these public folders and read any files in the public folder itself.
If you want to share the full home directories of both the Mac and the Vista PC user, ensure that both accounts on the Mac and the PC match, they have the same username and password.
