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Question

Raspberry Pi File Server

Mar 28, 2016 4:57AM PDT

I have a raspberry pi 3 with Windows 10 IoT installed as the operating system using Noobs to download the OS files. I have a 2TB external hard drive connected and the device is connected to my wifi router with an Ethernet cable.

I have set the static IP address, set to boot headless, and created two user accounts on the device using Power Shell on my desktop PC running windows 10. I can map a network drive on my local LAN using the local IP address and the drive letter using the following notation "\\xxx.xx.x.x\e$" where e is the drive letter of the USB port where the storage is mounted.

I tried to mount the network drive from another windows 10 PC on another network (not at my house). When I select the check box "log in with another user" and hit finish, I get a login pop up and enter my user name and password that I set up on the pi. It says "attempting to access the folder" or some such message. after a few seconds (10-20) I am presented with the login popup again. It does not say that the password is incorrect or that the location cannot be found or anything.

I have forwarded several ports on my router to allow access but I am unsure if I have forwarded the correct port. I am also unsure if the port is the reason I cannot seem to be able to connect. Please help.

Discussion is locked

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Clarification Request
Why port forward?
Mar 28, 2016 7:52AM PDT

The only way to expose this to say the web (that's a WAN) is to put this server into the DMZ. Did you try the DMZ?

PS. There's another issue with the file sharing system you are trying to use. It's generally accepted it doesn't work across networks like that. This is why folk use FTP and other file services. This is NOT an offer to fix Microsoft's implementation you are trying to use.

Post was last edited on March 28, 2016 7:54 AM PDT

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because that is the only way I know
Mar 28, 2016 8:00AM PDT

I have not tried DMZ. I am not sure what it actually is. My goal is to place as much work onto the setup and as little work onto the user as possible. (i.e. I may allow access to my mother-in-law in Utah and she won't know what to do so I'll have to explain it to her. It should be simple for her to log in. No start-up scripts). Also, I would like to avoid having to purchase additional software or services like samba. What do I need to do to make this work (DMZ or FTP could be acceptable if I don't need samba or windows server) across networks?

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Remember
Mar 28, 2016 8:13AM PDT

This was not an offer to fix Windows file sharing across the web.

If you want to share files across the web, the usual ways are web servers, FTP sites and maybe Dropbox.

I know you may be upset I won't dive into Windows file sharing but that discussion is a dead end with thousands of priors. If I was to do this I'd go with a ftp server and if I wanted it to be easy, a web server with the files listed in a web page. That requires some work which won't fit in this small text box but is widely written about on the web.

In other words, I would not try Windows file sharing on the web.

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DMZ vs FTP
Mar 28, 2016 8:13AM PDT

FTP is a type of server software "file transport protocol" and DMZ is "demilitarized zone" or meaning a computer is directly exposed to the internet. They aren't exactly comparable.

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I find that we need to broach both areas when discussing
Mar 28, 2016 8:24AM PDT

Servers on your router. Port forwarding for some reason is something that doesn't seem to be working here so they need to use DMZ. Then the second issue is Windows Shares across the web (which many know is just a bad idea.)

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so linux then?
Mar 28, 2016 10:24AM PDT

So it sounds like the way I am trying to do this is just wrong. So let me just clarify before I start this whole thing over on Linux. Is there a way to host a file server from my raspberry pi that I can mount and access the files through windows explorer (not the internet browser) if the pi has windows 10 IoT rather than raspian?

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Sorry if it sounded like that.
Mar 28, 2016 11:52AM PDT

I wanted it clear that Windows Shares on the web is so well done and such a security risk that if I was to do this I'd be using other solutions.

But I didn't want you to be left empty handed. You can try it in the DMZ so your Windows Rasberry IoT is on the web (or internet or what you want to call it.)

Then I wanted to broach how I set up file servers. FTP is one of my goto solutions. After that web servers that list out files in folders that are shared. And of course Dropbox where that fits.

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Answer
what format on the external drive?
Mar 28, 2016 8:11AM PDT

If you are running a linux system and the USB external drive is some ext* or format other than NTFS or FAT**, then how would you expect Windows to see it without an program to read EXT* type formats?

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not linux
Mar 28, 2016 10:33AM PDT

I am not running Linux. My raspberry pi is running windows 10 IoT and my PC is running Windows 10.

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probably easiest for you
Mar 28, 2016 6:26PM PDT