How do I use Ubuntu Server as file server?
The important thing to remember is that Desktop and Server are the same underlying OS, with different packages & configuration In Windows that isn't true (tx to @jay-bazuzi)
This is a step-to-step answer.
Install samba
sudo apt-get install samba samba-common
Install some dependencies for Configuration tools
sudo apt-get install python-glade2
Installa samba configuration tool
sudo apt-get install system-config-samba
Make a new user Jones
adduser Jones
Make a Linux password for user jones
passwd pirat9
Open samba configuration tool.
Add the folder you want to share and setup the permissions
Create a samba user
sudo smbpasswd -a jones
New SMB password
retype New SMB Password
You can chose any directory you want to share by right click on the folder directory and open the share options
Now at this point if your ubuntu server has ip: 192.168.1.10 you can access to your folder with a Linux Machine typing on Nautilus address bar:
smb://192.168.1.10/pirat9
or on a windows machine with:
\\192.168.1.10\pirat9
Thanks Linuxman for screen and refs: http://www.unixmen.com/howto-install-and-configure-samba-share-in-ubuntu/
The short answer is yes, you can set up file sharing with Samba. See
- https://help.ubuntu.com/14.04/serverguide/samba-fileserver.html
There's also a beginner-friendly tutorial here http://www.howtogeek.com/74459/how-to-create-samba-windows-shares-in-linux-the-easy-way/. If you search for Samba in the Ubuntu Software Center, you'll find a nice little GUI for this.
File Servers
If you have more than one computer on a single network. At some point you will probably need to share files between them. In this section we cover installing and configuring FTP, NFS, and CUPS.
FTP Server
Network File System (NFS)
iSCSI Initiator
CUPS - Print Server
SOURCE -> File Servers
Windows Networking
Computer networks are often comprised of diverse systems, and while operating a network made up entirely of Ubuntu desktop and server computers would certainly be fun, some network environments must consist of both Ubuntu and Microsoft® Windows® systems working together in harmony. This section of the Ubuntu Server Guide introduces principles and tools used in configuring your Ubuntu Server for sharing network resources with Windows computers.
Introduction
Samba File Server
Samba Print Server
Securing a Samba File and Print Server
Samba as a Domain Controller
Samba Active Directory Integration
SOURCE -> Windows Networking