Member Avatar for redjay

Hi all, I have spent a long time on this problem and trawled all the forums. Much of the discussion is old. I have two Windows 8 computers, set up for file sharing, but the process is not exactly even, perhaps becuase the desktop is a private computer and the laptop is a work one, or more likely because there is something wrong with the permissions on the desktop. That would be easy to tease out if someone knew about it. I have looked at all the links, and tried numerous solutions, though.
On the laptop,
I can open the home desktop computer and copy files from the desktop computer
But I can't copy files to the desktop, which is what I want to do.
On the desktop,
I can't open the laptop at all.

On the desktop, I am interested in a folder called Users, that is currently owned by SYSTEM. I tried changing ownership to my name and then granting Everyone Full Control, but I got error messages about Access rights. I am a little concerned that the files might not be in a good state, permissions wise. I ahve 30 years of Mac experience, so this is a new world for me.

I would seriously like to discuss this issue, as there does not seem to be anything fresh on it at present.
Thanks!

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by rubberman

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Brief diagnosis and safe path forward (notes for ; builds on ): the symptoms point to two separate issues that commonly get conflated — network/authentication reachability (VPN, public vs private network, firewall, domain/workgroup) and filesystem access control (share permissions versus NTFS permissions). C:\Users being owned by SYSTEM is normal; changing its owner or giving Everyone Full Control is risky and often causes more problems. A dedicated shared folder with correctly matched share and NTFS rights is the safer fix.

Practical checklist (order matters):

  • Ensure both machines are on the same LAN and the network profile is Private/Home. Disable any active VPN while testing.
  • Turn on Network Discovery and File and Printer Sharing in Advanced Sharing Settings on both machines.
  • Allow File and Printer Sharing through Windows Firewall and temporarily disable third‑party firewalls for testing.
  • Confirm whether the laptop is domain‑joined; domain policies can block sharing to workgroup PCs.

Share vs NTFS (what often trips people): a share can permit write but the NTFS ACL on the folder can still deny it. Both layers must allow the desired action (write/copy). Best practice: create a new folder for sharing (for example C:\SharedFiles), set share permissions to give the required users Change or Full Control, then set NTFS permissions to grant those same users Modify.

Quick tests and commands to run from a command prompt (replace placeholders):

ping DESKTOP
net view \\DESKTOP
net use Z: \\DESKTOP\ShareName /user:DESKTOP\Username Password
icacls "C:\SharedFiles"

Cautions and recovery: do not grant Everyone Full Control on C:\Users. If ownership or ACLs were changed and errors appeared, back up current ACLs before attempting fixes:

icacls "C:\Users" /save C:\Users_acl.txt /t

If restoring becomes necessary, use system restore or an ACL backup restore instead of ad hoc wide permission grants. Creating and sharing a new folder avoids most risks and is the recommended, secure workaround.

Member Avatar for rubberman

It is likely that the laptop belongs to a work workgroup. Your desktop doesn't belong to that group. Changing the laptop's workgroup is probably not a good idea as it may make the system unable to connect to other shares at work, and it may, or may not be possible to reassign your desktop to the work workgroup. If you can do that, it may help your situation.

Also, on my work laptop, it will usually automatically try to connect via a VPN to my work network, making this issue even more difficult. You may want to check that out. If so, then you may need to first disconnect the VPN. IE, if I want my desktop at home to have normal shares with my laptop, I have to disable the VPN so it is only visible to my home LAN.

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