How to Share a Folder Over the Network

Need to share a file or folder with another device connected to your network? Transferring files between machines requires only a few changes to your computer’s settings. In this beginner’s guide, we’ll show you how to share a folder over the network, whether you’re using Windows or Mac OS.

Window

Here’s how to share a folder on your Windows computer:

1. Right click on the folder you want to share.
2. Select Share> Specific People.
3. From there, you can select specific users and their permission level (whether they can only read or read / write). Once you’ve made your selection, click Share.
4. If the user is not listed, enter their name in the taskbar and click Add. You can also share with everyone.
5. Click Share.

If you are in explorer, you can also click the Share tab and select users using the same process as above.

To access the shared folder on other computers on the network, simply look for your computer name under Network on the other computer. When you select it, you will have a new option to connect to this folder.

Note: Previous versions of Windows allowed you to share files with members of your homegroup. This feature is no longer supported on Windows 10 (version 1803).

Mac OS X

Sharing a folder in Mac OS X isn’t as easy as it is in Windows, but it’s still pretty simple. Here’s how:

1. Open System Preferences (click the icon in the Dock or the Apple menu in the upper-left corner of your screen).
2. In the System Preferences pane, select Share.
3. Find the File Sharing option in the far left of the menu window. Check the box.
4. Two rectangles will appear on the right. The left field will list the shared folders, and the right field will list the users who can access them. To add a folder, click the + sign under the Shared Folders box. Select the desired folder and click Add.
5. This folder is now public, but you will also want to check which users can access this folder over the network and what they can do. For example, if you want them to be able to only read the files in the folder, but not make any changes, you should select the Read Only option (click the arrows on the right to toggle permissions). Whatever you choose, this folder will now be available on the local network.

To access this new shared folder from another computer, simply open a new Finder window (by pressing Command + N on your keyboard in the Finder, or by choosing New Finder Window from the File menu). In the pane on the left side of the window, there will be a section called Shared.

Below it will be a list of shared computers. Click the name of the computer that has the folder you just shared and want to access. After a moment, the list of shared folders will load. Click the shared folder you want to access. You may be prompted to enter your username and password if you have not allowed “Everyone” access.

If you want to show it all at a glance, we have a video that walks you through all the steps. Fair warning: the video first appeared in 2011, and while the steps and processes have not changed, the visuals will differ slightly depending on which system you are currently running on.

This story was originally published in June 2011 and was updated in November 2019 with the latest information.

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