Windows File Sharing on the Illinois Wesleyan Campus Network

Illinois Wesleyan University's campus network uses TCP/IP as its primary network protocol. Microsoft provides a proprietary file sharing capability within its Windows operating systems. This file sharing capability is commonly called "Network Neighborhood". The more technical name for this file sharing service is SMB/CIFS (Server Message Block / Common Internet File System.) This page describes how to use Windows file sharing on the Illinois Wesleyan campus network. If you need additional assistance, please call the IT Help Desk at 309-556-3900.

Windows file sharing can often be accomplished using Windows network neighborhood browse function. Unfortunately, this browse function was not intended to support networks with multiple routers, such as the Illinois Wesleyan campus network. Clicking on network neighborhood (sometimes also called "My Network Places") will produce an incomplete listing of computers on campus. Even though you cannot browse all the computers on the campus network, you can still connect to any computer on campus, provided you know the computer and directory you want to share, and the necessary passwords.

If you know the computer name and directory to be shared, you can use the UNC name (Universal Naming Convention) to connect using either Microsoft Windows or Apple Macintosh OS X. Here are connection steps for Windows and Mac OS X.

WINDOWS file sharing (SMB/CIFS)

First, from the "Start" menu, select "Run"

When the Run prompt appears, enter the UNC name for the directory on the computer you want to share.

The format for the UNC name is \\computer_name\shared_directory

The example below is connecting to the directory named "fmiller" on the computer named "titan".

After entering the UNC name, you will be prompted to enter your username and password, as shown below.

When your username and password are accepted, the shared directory will appear on your desktop as a new window.

If you need additional assistance, please call the Office of Information Technology Help Desk at 309-556-3900, e-mail it@iwu.edu, or or use the online support request form (on-campus or via campus proxy server only).

Windows file sharing for Mac OS X

Apple Macintosh computers running OS X can also mount shared directories using Windows file sharing. To begin using a directory using Windows file sharing select the "Go" menu, and then "Connect to Server" as shown below.

You will be prompted for the server and directory to share. Enter the UNC name for the folder and directory as shown below. The address must start with "smb:" and the UNC name uses forward slashes (not the Windows backward slashes "\\").

Password protected directories will prompt for a Username and Password. In the example below, the server named "titan" was found using Windows browsing. If Windows browsing cannot find the computer, you will need to enter its workgroup.

When you have successfully connected to a shared directory using Windows file sharing, the drive will appear on your desktop, similar to the example below.

If you need additional assistance, please call the Office of Information Technology Help Desk at 309-556-3900, e-mail it@iwu.edu, or or use the online support request form (on-campus or via campus proxy server only).