How to share files and folders on a local network

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Detailed instructions on how to set up the transfer of folders and files in a local network between devices with Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android.

Your home network probably contains a wide variety of devices, be it Windows or Linux computers, Macbooks or Android phones. And you most likely want to transfer files between them. Instead of copying files to flash drives and running from room to room, it is much more convenient to simply set up shared folders on the local network. This is not difficult to do.

Windows

First of all, enable the ability to exchange files over a local network in the settings. Open "Control Panel" and go to "Network and Internet" → "Sharing Settings". Select the network you are connected to and activate the "Turn on network discovery" and "Turn on file and printer sharing" options.

Now right click on the folder you want to share and select Options. In the folder settings, on the "Shared" tab, set the access settings, making it possible for all users of your local network to write and read files in the shared folder.

To view folders open on your local network, in Explorer, select Network in the sidebar.

macOS

Go to your Mac's System Preferences and select the Sharing section. Turn on File and Folder Sharing. Go to "Options …" and check "Sharing files and folders via SMB".

Below, in the "Shared Folders" section, you can choose which folders to share. If you want users on the local network to be able to upload files to these folders, in the "Users" section, open the read / write option for all users.

To access files on your local network, select Go from the menu bar of your Finder and click on Network.

Linux

Sharing folders in Linux is very easy. Take Ubuntu as an example.

Sharing Linux folders on a local network is provided by Samba. You can install it using the following command:

sudo apt-get install samba samba-common system-config-samba

In the file manager, right-click on the folder you want to share from the local network. Open the properties for the folder, go to the Local Area Public Folder tab and select Publish This Folder.

To copy files to this folder from another computer, select Allow others to modify the contents of this folder.

If you do not want to enter your login and password again, check the "Guest access" item.

You can access folders on your local network in Ubuntu by selecting Network in the sidebar of the Nautilus file manager.

iOS

You can connect to shared folders on the local network in iOS using FileExporer Free. Click the "+" button and choose which device you want to connect to: Windows, macOS or Linux. After searching for devices on the local network, FileExporer Free will provide you with a list of shared folders.

Android

You can create a shared folder in Android using file managers such as ES.

Open the Network section in the ES File Manager sidebar and select LAN. Use the Search button to locate the desired shared folder. Connect to it by checking the Anonymous option or, if necessary, by entering the password and login of your account on the device where the folder is located.

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Third party application

If you urgently need to transfer files on the local network, but do not want to fiddle with configuration, use Dukto. It is a free and open source program that can transfer files, folders and text between gadgets on a local network. It is enough to install it on the devices between which you want to organize data exchange, and drag the necessary folder or files into the application window. Duckto supports Windows, macOS, Linux and Android devices.

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Download Dukto for Windows →

Download Dukto for macOS →

Download Dukto for Linux →