File sharing: Windows computers connecting to Apple computers

Learning, using, and abusing Samba on a Mac. 

It was in September 2007 when I first purchased my Macbook to replace my dying laptop for school.  As a diehard Windows user I purchased my Macbook almost as a sheer impulse and disgust for the early Vista release. While it took me time to love my Mac, it took me about a year to actually figure how access my Macbook on a network via a regular PC.  While I further my attempts in becoming as OS agnostic as I can, learning how to take any two computers (or more) and share files is KEY for the DIY home network administrator. 

So without further ado, the interesting part you probably used Google for with little explanations.

Step 1: Know your path

On the Mac, you need to know exactly WHICH folder you want to share.  For this example, we are going to share our iTunes music folder from our username. Example would be: /Users/will/Music/iTunes. 

 Step 2: Add the share

Run the terminal and type: sudo open -a TextEdit.app /private/var/db/smb.conf. Press enter.  Type the administrator password (or your own user password is usually the case).  The text file will appear, at the bottom after the [homes] section and right before the [global] section include the following:

Save the file and proceed to the next step.  

Step 3: Reload the configure file

Go back to the Terminal and type: sudo killall -HUD smbd. You should be now ready to access your computer through Windows networking!!! If not, one final step if you haven't found it already. 

Step 4: Turning on Windows file sharing

This is assumed to be done if were like me that failed in file sharing with Mac before.  But just in case, go to System Preferences > Sharing.  Make the window look like the following: 

Step 5: Connect with Windows!!

On Windows XP, go to Start > Run.  To access the files in this example I would type: \\will\Music. So in correct "samba" terms, to connect it would be \\<machine name or IP address>\<share name>.

Caution and words of wisdom

When editing the smb.conf file it may be wise to save a backup in case you need to replace the original due to a mistake. If you have any other questions about samba shares, consult your favorite search engine. I can say what I know but the best sources are the ones I found through Google myself when I need them :P.  I'll update later as I see issues, but until then enjoy and feel free to email Tom with any questions, comments, or possible business!!!