How to Set up and Access Personal File Sharing on a Mac

Transferring files between two Apple computers is as easy as setting up a share and connecting to the drive through your home network. Personal file sharing allows other Macintosh users on your network to connect to the drives on your Mac. You will, however, need the user name and password of an account on the computer you're accesssing.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Mac computer
• Home network
• Two Mac Computers
• Home Network
• IP address of the Mac computer you want to access

Setting up Personal File Sharing

1. 

   Click the Apple logo on the top left of the screen and select "System Preferences."

2. 

   Click on "Sharing" in the "Internet & Network" section of the "System Preferences" window.

3. 

   Type in a descriptive name if there is no "Computer Name" in the "Computer Name" field of the "Sharing" Preferences Pane. This is what will identify your Mac on the home network.

4. 

   Click the check box next to "Personal File Sharing" under the "Services" section of the "Sharing" preferences pane.

5. If the button to the right of the select box says "Start," click on that to start Personal file sharing. You can stop file sharing at any time by clicking the "Stop" button on this window.

Accessing the Shared Mac with the Finder

1. 

   Open the Finder.

2. 

   Click "Network." A list of available shared computers will show. If it's not there, go to the section labeled "Use Connect to Server"

3. 

   Click the computer you wish to access and click "Connect."

4. 

   Type in the user name and password of an account for that computer and click "Connect."

5. 

   Select the drive (volume) you want to access (mount) and click "OK." Now, the drive will show up in your Finder.

Use

1. Open the Finder.

2. Click "Go" on the top menu.

3. 

   Click "Connect to Server."

4. 

   Type in "afp://" followed by the IP address of the Mac you want to access in this window. Then click "Connect."

5. 

   Type in the user name and password for that computer and click "Connect."

6. 

   Select the drive you want to access, then click "OK." This drive will now appear in your Finder.

Tips & Warnings

• You can add security to your folders by right-clicking the folder, selecting "Get Info" and setting the "Ownership and Permissions" Details to "Read Only," "Write Only," "Read and Write" or "No Access" for "Others".