Networking All-in-One For Dummies

Chapter 5

Managing a File Server

In This Chapter

Configuring a file server

Sharing folders

Setting permissions

In this chapter, you discover how to set up and manage file and print servers for Windows Server 2016. Because the features for file and print servers are essentially the same for previous versions of Windows Server, the techniques presented in this chapter should work for older versions as well.

Understanding Permissions

Before I get into the details of setting up a file server, you need to have a solid understanding of the concept of permissions. Permissions allow users to access shared resources on a network. Simply sharing a resource such as a disk folder or a printer doesn’t guarantee that a given user is able to access that resource. Windows makes this decision based on the permissions that have been assigned to various groups for the resource and group memberships of the user. If the user belongs to a group that has been granted permission to access the resource, the access is allowed. If not, access is denied.

In theory, permissions sound pretty simple. In practice, however, they can get pretty complicated. The following paragraphs explain some of the nuances ...