Help me connect to remote server running smb

PeterCPH · 31 Aug 2014

Hello

Let me start by saying I am a complete novice and know very little about how Windows 7 works. So I need pre-school-level advice.

The problem: We have a file server running Mac OS X Server and SMB-sharing IS enabled. All clients can access the server on the local network, including the two people using PC's with Windows 7.

The Mac users can also access the fileserver from home - they select "connect to server", key in the IP-address and is then asked for username and password.

The Windows users apparently cannot.

Everything should be enabled, but I have no idea how to do it.

On the local network they can open Explorer and type \\IP-adresss\filsersver and then username and password - they can even make a shortcut on the desktop.

But of course the IP-address on the local network is different from the IP-address they need to use if they are working from home. And it does not work from home.

I am pretty sure, the Explorer way is not the correct way to go ... and I have found ot there is something called network mapping. I just don't have any idea what to click and where to type the IP-address and servername.

So if anybody know, I will be SO happy.

Please also ask what you need to know, in order to be able to answer/help.

Kind regards,

Peter

PeterCPH · 04 Sep 2014

Hello Shadowjk

You write: "... if you could run Windows SMS file sharing ..."

That is what we do. SMB file sharing IS enabled on the server. My original post was this: Help me connect to remote server running smb and that is whatr I hope to find a way to solve.

It was just that when I saw this FTP topic I thought pewrhaps that was a way to do it. Apparently not.

So I'm still stuck ... i don't know ho to access the remote server from a computer running Win 7 Professional. I know nothing about how to map a share.

The short story is: I know the IP-address and I have the username and password - how do I connect to retrieve data and store files?

Peter

Shadowjk · 04 Sep 2014

PeterCPH said:

Hello Shadowjk

You write: "... if you could run Windows SMS file sharing ..."

That is what we do. SMB file sharing IS enabled on the server. My original post was this: Help me connect to remote server running smb and that is whatr I hope to find a way to solve.

It was just that when I saw this FTP topic I thought pewrhaps that was a way to do it. Apparently not.

So I'm still stuck ... i don't know ho to access the remote server from a computer running Win 7 Professional. I know nothing about how to map a share.

The short story is: I know the IP-address and I have the username and password - how do I connect to retrieve data and store files?

Peter

Hmmm... SMB doesn't work so nicely when going through NAT and unless you have some VPN solution in place you're going to stuggle.

As with authentication have you made sure to specify the domain/hostname and then the username?

For example, to access a share on a device called Josh-PC I would enter:

Username: Josh-PC\Administrator

Password: {password for administrator account}

Josh :)

PeterCPH · 04 Sep 2014

Hmmmm ... OK. I guess I'll have to accept, that Windows just can't do that then. A real bummer.

It's so dead-easy on a Mac. And works so well.

Or maybe I don't express myself too well? That is absolutely possible.

Let me try again ...

I have a server at the office. Sometime some people ha a need to access this server from their homes. One of these people have a laptop with Windows 7 Professional.

He can access the server just fine, when he's in the office (same local network).

How can he access the server from home?

SMB-sharing/Windows-sharing IS enabled on the server, and we know the IP-adsress of the server, and he has his username and his password. We just dont know what to do. There must be somewhere where we should type this information?

I am aware this should be in the other thread - but since you ask here, I answer here.

Kind regards,

Peter

Shadowjk · 04 Sep 2014

Well if you're infrastructure supports it then you can try and perform a static mapping to a drive letter:

Map Network Drive

Follow Method Two only

Hopefully this will work,
Josh :)

PeterCPH · 07 Sep 2014

Hello Josh
I'm sorry. I cannot make this work. I may be ding something wrong?
I find it hard to believe, that there is no way (simple) to connect to a remote server, when you know the IP-address, username and password. I have no idea what domains and maps are or what to do with them. Or drive letters for that matter.

I know that in windows-PC's the harddrive is called C:

On the server there is no drive letter. It is just a shared folder on the server, that I want to access.

Why have they made it so difficult?

:-(