First step is to check if the file sharing option is checked in my computer folder options.
Start- My computer- TOOLS - FOLDER OPTIONS- and click on the second tab VIEW- scroll down to the last option which will show as USE SIMPLE FILE SHARING.
Level 1: My Documents (Private)
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The owner of the file or folder has read and write permission to the file or folder. Nobody else may read or write to the folder or the files in it. All subfolders that are contained in a folder that is marked as private remain private unless you change the parent folder permissions.
If you are a Computer Administrator and create a user password for your account by using the User Accounts Control Panel tool, you are prompted to make your files and folder private.
Note The option to make a folder private (Level 1) is available only to a user account in its own My Documents folder.
To configure a folder and all the files in it to Level 1, follow these steps:
- Right-click the folder, and then click Sharing and Security.
- Select the Make this Folder Private check box, and then click OK.
Local NTFS Permissions:
- Owner: Full Control
- System: Full Control
Network Share Permissions:
Level 2 (Default): My Documents (Default)
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The owner of the file or folder and local Computer Administrators have read and write permission to the file or folder. Nobody else may read or write to the folder or the files in it. This is the default setting for all the folders and files in each user's My Documents folder.
To configure a folder and all the files in it to Level 2, follow these steps:
- Right-click the folder, and then click Sharing and Security.
- Make sure that both the Make this Folder Private and the Share this folder on the network check boxes are cleared, and then click OK.
Local NTFS Permissions:
- Owner: Full Control
- Administrators: Full Control
- System: Full Control
Network Share Permissions:
Level 3: Files in shared documents available to local users
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Files are shared with users who log on to the computer locally. Local Computer Administrators can read, write, and delete the files in the Shared Documents folder. Restricted Users can only read the files in the Shared Documents folder. In Windows XP Professional, Power Users may also read, write, or delete any files in the Shared Documents Folder. The Power Users group is available only in Windows XP Professional. Remote users cannot access folders or files at Level 3. To allow remote users to access files, you must share them out on the network (Level 4 or 5).
To configure a file or a folder and all the files in it to Level 3, start Microsoft Windows Explorer, and then copy or move the file or folder to the Shared Documents folder under My Computer.
Local NTFS Permissions:
- Owner: Full Control
- Administrators: Full Control
- Power Users: Change
- Restricted Users: Read
- System: Full Control
Network Share Permissions:
Level 4: Shared on the Network (Read-Only)
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Files are shared for everyone to read on the network. All local users, including the Guest account, can read the files. But they cannot modify the contents. Any user can read and change your files.
To configure a folder and all the files in it to Level 4, follow these steps:
- Right-click the folder, and then click Sharing and Security.
- Click to select the Share this folder on the network check box
- Click to clear the Allow network users to change my files check box, and then click OK.
Local NTFS Permissions:
- Owner: Full Control
- Administrators: Full Control
- System: Full Control
- Everyone: Read
Network Share Permissions:
Level 5: Shared on the network (Read and Write)
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This level is the most available and least secure access level. Any user (local or remote) can read, write, change, or delete a file in a folder shared at this access level. We recommend that this level be used only for a closed network that has a firewall configured. All local users including the Guest account can also read and modify the files.
To configure a folder and all the files in it to Level 5, follow these steps:
- Right-click the folder, and then click Sharing and Security
- Click to select the Share this folder on the network check box, and then click OK.
Local NTFS Permissions:
- Owner: Full Control
- Administrators: Full Control
- System: Full Control
- Everyone: Change
Network Share Permissions:
Note All NTFS permissions that refer to Everyone include the Guest account.
All the levels that this article describes are mutually exclusive. Private folders (Level 1) cannot be shared unless they are no longer private. Shared folders (Level 4 and 5) cannot be made private until they are unshared.
If you create a folder in the Shared Documents folder (Level 3), share it on the network, and then allow network users to change your files (Level 5), the permissions for Level 5 are effective for the folder, the files in that folder, and the subfolders. The other files and folders in the Shared Documents folder remain configured at Level 3.
