Moving files from one PC to another can seem really inconvenient, especially if every time we have to recover a USB stick or an external hard drive in order to move.
Instead of going crazy with external devices, we can make sure that the various PCs with Windows see each other by directly exploiting the home network present in the house.
In this guide we will show you how to create a home network with Windows and make PCs visible on the same network (also connected via WiFi), so you can access your files from any location and possibly move them without using mass memories.
At the end of the guide we will also show you how to share a network printer, so as to add this important device to the home network and print without problems from any PC.
The guide refers to Windows 10, the latest Microsoft operating system, but it can also be easily reused with Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, since the steps are very similar between all versions.
READ ALSO -> How to connect Windows PCs in LAN
1) View PCs on the network
The first step is to make the various PCs that make up our network visible to each other, so that we can have a basis on which to start in creating the home network.
We then turn on all the PCs with Windows 10 present on the network (connected both via Ethernet cable and via WiFi to the home modem), open the Start menu at the bottom left and type Advanced sharing, taking care to select the homonymous entry in the Control Panel check that we will see appear at the top of the list.
A new window will open, in which we will have to select the right profile based on the network we are using.
For this guide let's go to the Private profile and enabling the items Enable network discovery, Enable the automatic configuration of devices connected to the network and the item Enable file and printer sharing ; we also open the All networks profile and enable the Enable sharing item to allow all users with access to the network to read and write public folder files .
To confirm the changes, click below on the Save changes item.
To get the maximum result, we will have to move the network to which we are connected on the PC in the Private profile, so as to make it visible to all the other devices.
To do this on Windows 10 just right click on the bottom right of the network icon, open the item Settings Open connection and Internet and click on the item Edit connection properties, present at the top under the name of the connection currently used.
In the window that we will see we make sure to select the Private button, so as to move the network to the right profile.
On Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 we can achieve the same result by opening Windows Explorer and going to the Network side menu; if we are on a network with a Public profile, a small yellow string will appear at the top of the window, just click on it to move the PC to the Private profile.
We repeat the steps on all the PCs in our possession, so as to make them ready for sharing; PCs should already be visible by opening Windows Explorer and taking us to the Network side menu ( Computer section).
2) Share folders on the network
If we want to share a specific folder with all the other PCs on the network, just follow a few simple steps.
We open Windows Explorer and go to the path of the folder to be shared, then we right-click on it to open the Properties menu.
Once the new window is open, let's go to the Sharing tab and click on the Share button.
A new window will open, where we must immediately enter the user authorized to access; to be able to access all the PCs on the network, type Everyone in the available text field and click Add .
A new user will be added to the authorized ones; we choose the permissions to be transferred to the other PCs that will connect to this folder (on the right side, we can choose whether to provide the Read or Read / Write permissions) and finally click on Share and then on Operation completed .
The folder will be shared on the network and will remain accessible to other PCs with the agreed permissions.
We repeat the steps for all the folders we intend to share, even on the other PCs.
If we want to remove a share from a folder, go to the Sharing tab, click on Advanced Sharing and remove the check mark under Share the folder .
To access shared folders in this way, go to the Explorer, open the Network side menu and click on the name of the PC on which we created the shared folder; after a few seconds the folder or folders that we shared will appear.
3) Protection of shared folders
Normally access to shared folders is allowed only to those who know the Windows username and password for that specific PC (so we do not have to use the username and password of the PC we are using to access, but the username and password of the PC which hosts the file).
If we have difficulty accessing our files with the credentials in our possession (perhaps because we have used a Microsoft online account), we can also remove the password request when we access the network folders.
Obviously this will make access to shared folders less secure (especially if we share personal or important files), but just exclude PCs not in our possession (or not under our control) from identifying the network to obtain a good security compromise (in practice we have to do the opposite of the steps seen in point 1), especially if we combine everything with a standard account (you create a standard account saved in the Public network profile, then you set an administration password with the administrative account : in order to change the network profile, the administrator password will be required in the standard account).
In order to remove the password request, we open the Start menu at the bottom left again and type Advanced sharing, taking care to select the same name.
Now expand the item All networks and insert the check mark under Disable password protected sharing, then click on Save changes at the bottom.
We repeat the steps for all Windows PCs connected to the network, so that no one asks for the password anymore when we try to connect to the shared folders.
4) Share network printer
We want to print from all PCs without having to install drivers "> every time
We enable the check mark on the Share the printer item and we provide a name for the printer, taking care to leave the item Render print jobs on client computers checked.
If we have various versions of Windows on the various PCs on the network, we click on Additional Drivers to be able to install all the drivers necessary for printing.
On Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 we can do the same thing by opening the Start menu, typing Control Panel and going to the View devices and printers menu.
Right click on the printer icon, then open the Printer Properties menu and then on Sharing, to bring us to the same window seen on Windows 10.
Whatever the road followed, to use the shared printer on the network simply open the Explorer, go to the Network menu and click on the printer displayed as shared (alternatively we click on the name of the PC where the printer is present and we do click on it).
READ ALSO: How to connect PCs remotely and control them via VPN
Instead of going crazy with external devices, we can make sure that the various PCs with Windows see each other by directly exploiting the home network present in the house.
In this guide we will show you how to create a home network with Windows and make PCs visible on the same network (also connected via WiFi), so you can access your files from any location and possibly move them without using mass memories.
At the end of the guide we will also show you how to share a network printer, so as to add this important device to the home network and print without problems from any PC.
The guide refers to Windows 10, the latest Microsoft operating system, but it can also be easily reused with Windows 7 and Windows 8.1, since the steps are very similar between all versions.
READ ALSO -> How to connect Windows PCs in LAN
1) View PCs on the network
The first step is to make the various PCs that make up our network visible to each other, so that we can have a basis on which to start in creating the home network.
We then turn on all the PCs with Windows 10 present on the network (connected both via Ethernet cable and via WiFi to the home modem), open the Start menu at the bottom left and type Advanced sharing, taking care to select the homonymous entry in the Control Panel check that we will see appear at the top of the list.
A new window will open, in which we will have to select the right profile based on the network we are using.
For this guide let's go to the Private profile and enabling the items Enable network discovery, Enable the automatic configuration of devices connected to the network and the item Enable file and printer sharing ; we also open the All networks profile and enable the Enable sharing item to allow all users with access to the network to read and write public folder files .
To confirm the changes, click below on the Save changes item.
To get the maximum result, we will have to move the network to which we are connected on the PC in the Private profile, so as to make it visible to all the other devices.
To do this on Windows 10 just right click on the bottom right of the network icon, open the item Settings Open connection and Internet and click on the item Edit connection properties, present at the top under the name of the connection currently used.
In the window that we will see we make sure to select the Private button, so as to move the network to the right profile.
On Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 we can achieve the same result by opening Windows Explorer and going to the Network side menu; if we are on a network with a Public profile, a small yellow string will appear at the top of the window, just click on it to move the PC to the Private profile.
We repeat the steps on all the PCs in our possession, so as to make them ready for sharing; PCs should already be visible by opening Windows Explorer and taking us to the Network side menu ( Computer section).
2) Share folders on the network
If we want to share a specific folder with all the other PCs on the network, just follow a few simple steps.
We open Windows Explorer and go to the path of the folder to be shared, then we right-click on it to open the Properties menu.
Once the new window is open, let's go to the Sharing tab and click on the Share button.
A new window will open, where we must immediately enter the user authorized to access; to be able to access all the PCs on the network, type Everyone in the available text field and click Add .
A new user will be added to the authorized ones; we choose the permissions to be transferred to the other PCs that will connect to this folder (on the right side, we can choose whether to provide the Read or Read / Write permissions) and finally click on Share and then on Operation completed .
The folder will be shared on the network and will remain accessible to other PCs with the agreed permissions.
We repeat the steps for all the folders we intend to share, even on the other PCs.
If we want to remove a share from a folder, go to the Sharing tab, click on Advanced Sharing and remove the check mark under Share the folder .
To access shared folders in this way, go to the Explorer, open the Network side menu and click on the name of the PC on which we created the shared folder; after a few seconds the folder or folders that we shared will appear.
3) Protection of shared folders
Normally access to shared folders is allowed only to those who know the Windows username and password for that specific PC (so we do not have to use the username and password of the PC we are using to access, but the username and password of the PC which hosts the file).
If we have difficulty accessing our files with the credentials in our possession (perhaps because we have used a Microsoft online account), we can also remove the password request when we access the network folders.
Obviously this will make access to shared folders less secure (especially if we share personal or important files), but just exclude PCs not in our possession (or not under our control) from identifying the network to obtain a good security compromise (in practice we have to do the opposite of the steps seen in point 1), especially if we combine everything with a standard account (you create a standard account saved in the Public network profile, then you set an administration password with the administrative account : in order to change the network profile, the administrator password will be required in the standard account).
In order to remove the password request, we open the Start menu at the bottom left again and type Advanced sharing, taking care to select the same name.
Now expand the item All networks and insert the check mark under Disable password protected sharing, then click on Save changes at the bottom.
We repeat the steps for all Windows PCs connected to the network, so that no one asks for the password anymore when we try to connect to the shared folders.
4) Share network printer
We want to print from all PCs without having to install drivers "> every time
We enable the check mark on the Share the printer item and we provide a name for the printer, taking care to leave the item Render print jobs on client computers checked.
If we have various versions of Windows on the various PCs on the network, we click on Additional Drivers to be able to install all the drivers necessary for printing.
On Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 we can do the same thing by opening the Start menu, typing Control Panel and going to the View devices and printers menu.
Right click on the printer icon, then open the Printer Properties menu and then on Sharing, to bring us to the same window seen on Windows 10.
Whatever the road followed, to use the shared printer on the network simply open the Explorer, go to the Network menu and click on the printer displayed as shared (alternatively we click on the name of the PC where the printer is present and we do click on it).
READ ALSO: How to connect PCs remotely and control them via VPN
