If you highlight a folder that Essentials created when first installed aside from Client Computer Backups you get an additional option: Open the folder. If you use the View the folder properties option on a pre-configured folder, you'll see that two tabs are available. The first, General, allows you to edit the folder name and description, open the folder again and set a quota warning. In the second tab. Sharing, you will find the ability to share or not share this folder with specific user groups.
If a user is not a member of a user group, they will be listed individually. You also have the option to hide a particular folder from someone accessing the server from a remote location. As you can see in the screenshot above, administrators have full access to all folders. You cannot modify sharing permissions for Client Computer Backups, File History Backups, Folder Redirection or the Users server folders, so don't expect to find a Sharing tab when you view the properties of these folders.
The next category of Shared Folders are user-generated folders such as the Accounting folder we created earlier. Just be aware if you remove a folder, you destroy anything left in it! Fortunately, you'll be asked to check a box that confirms you understand that you're about to kill your data before the server will remove the folder.
If you decide that you wish to stop sharing a user generated server folder, again it's straightforward. Highlight the folder and select the Stop sharing the folder task. When you stop sharing a folder, note that it will no longer be accessible via the Dashboard, Launchpad or Remote Web Access. But the folder isn't deleted - it remains in place on the server and can be shared again at another time. While the server folders are the heart of any server, any maintenance required within the Dashboard is rather simple to perform.
Company: a general folder used to store documents about your organization. File History Backups: you guessed it! Your user's File History backups will be stored in this folder. Folder Redirection: used to store user folders configured for folder redirection. Users: you'll find a separate folder for each of your network users stored here.
Moving Server Folders Moving a folder is a simple process that calculates the size of the folder you wish to move, asks you where you wish to move the folder to, and then does it. The following topics provide information that will help you understand, create, and manage server folders:. Manage server folders using the Dashboard. Manage access to server folders. Add or move a server folder. Add a missing server folder. Understand shared folders. Understand shadow copies.
Windows Server Essentials makes it possible to perform common administrative tasks by using the Dashboard. The Server Folders page of the Dashboard provides the following:.
Brief status information about any tasks that are being performed on the folder; the Status field is blank if the folder is healthy, and if no tasks are running. The following table describes the various server folder tasks that are available on the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard. Most of the tasks are folder-specific, and they are only visible when you select a folder in the list.
Windows Server Essentials enables you to store files that are located on your client computers to a central location by using server folders. Storing your files in server folders ensures that your files are in a place that is always accessible in a secure manner from each client.
Back up the server folder by using Server Backup and Restore to help protect against total server failure. You can manage access to any server folders on the server by using the tasks on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard. The following table lists the server folders that are created by default when you install Windows Server Essentials or turn on media streaming on your server. To hide or set permissions for server folders, or to modify server folder properties, see the following procedures:.
Hide server folders. Set permissions to server folders. View or modify server folder properties. As a network administrator, you can choose to hide any of these server folders and prevent them from being displayed on the Remote Web Access website or Web Services applications such as My Server. In the list view, select the server folder whose properties you want to view or modify.
For any additional server folder that you add on the server by using the Dashboard, you can choose three different access settings for it:. Choose this setting if you want to allow this person to create, change, and delete any files in the server folder. Choose this setting if you want to allow this person to only read the files in the server folder.
Users with read-only access cannot create, change, or delete any files in the server folder. Choose this setting if you do not want this person to access any files in the server folder. They do not include user permissions such as groups or service accounts, or include any permission that may be set on the folder by using other native tools, or include users that were not added through the Dashboard.
NOTE] By default, when you add a user account to your network, a subfolder is created for the user under the Users folder on the server. The subfolder can be accessed from a network computer by only the user or the administrator. The permissions are set for each subfolder under Users , so there are no general access permissions for the top-level Users folder. Hence, the folder properties of these server folders do not include a Sharing tab. You can modify the server folder name, its description, and define which user accounts have access to a server folder through the View the folder properties task on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard.
You can add more server folders to store your files on the server in addition to the default server folders that are created during setup. You can add server folders on either the primary server or a member server running Windows Server Essentials. You can move a server folder that is located on the primary server running Windows Server Essentials and is displayed on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard to another hard drive when needed by using the Move a Folder Wizard.
You can move a server folder to another hard drive location address if:. You want to change the default storage location. For a faster move, consider moving the server folder while it does not include any data. You want to remove the existing hard drive without losing the server folders that are located on it. Ensure that all client backups are stopped and not in progress if you plan on moving the Client Computer Backup folder.
While moving the Client Computer Backup folder, the server will be unable to back up any client computers until the folder move is completed.
Ensure that the server is not performing any critical system operations. It is recommended that you complete any updates or backups that are in progress before you start a folder move or the process may take longer to complete. None of the files in the folder to be moved are in use. You will be unable to access the server folder while it is being moved. Typically, you should add or move server folders onto hard drives that have the maximum amount of free space.
If possible, avoid adding or moving a shared folder to the system drive such as C: as it may take away the necessary drive space that is required for the operating system and its updates. Also, avoid adding or moving server folders to an external hard drive because they can be easily disconnected, and as a result, you may not be able to access your files.
Instead, we recommend that you create the folder on an internal drive. A server folder cannot be added or moved to the following locations and will result in an error if any of these locations is selected for additions or moves:. In Server Folder Tasks , click Add a folder. This launches the Add a Folder Wizard.
