Basic File Sharing question between user accounts on my iMac

I don't understand how to be able to share and download to one common folder among User Accounts on my iMac. I am trying to use a Clean Account as a test, and wanted to copy a file I downloaded from the web in one account into this clean account folder, and install the file.
I went to Sharing and thought I turn File Sharing on. Logged into the Clean account and Apple+I the folder, changing access priviledges to the folder. Then copy the file into the Clean User Account.
But it doesn't work that way. Can anyone help me understand sharing between accounts?

File Sharing is for sharing files between two different machines, not between different accounts on the same machine. If you want to share files on one machine, you just need to put them in a folder everyone has access to, like the /Users/shared folder. Also, don't go fooling around with folder permissions... that's a good way to mess things up. If I had a nickel for every time someone messed up their system using the "Apply to enclosed items" option when changing permissions, I'd be a rich man!

Similar Messages

Sharing libraries between user accounts question

After many years of having one user account on our iMac, I have decided to segregate user accounts for me and my wife. I'm doing this because I have an iPhone and she is going to get one soon. When we sync our respective iPhones, we want to keep iCal and and Address book information unique to each user account. What I'm trying to figure out is how to share iPhoto and iTunes content between user accounts. I know there is a share preference that will allow the master libraries in these applications to be shared, but the photo albums and playlists created on the original user account are not "shared". Would it be possible to have playlists from iTunes and albums/events from iPhoto to be shared between user accounts? This would enable my wife to sync all her iPhone data from her user account. Thanks in advance.

I have an idea that uses a different approach. I haven't done this for this purpose, so if you decide to try, please do it one step at a time so you can undo it. I'll explain it for iTunes.
Instead of using the Sharing preference in iTunes, put the iTunes Music folder in a location that can be accessed from both accounts. You might use an external drive, or the <hard drive>/Users/Shared folder.
iTunes should NOT be running. Go to /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. In that folder is the iTunes Music folder. Copy this folder to a location on the external drive or to the Shared user folder. Rename the original iTunes Music folder another name, such as iTunes Music Old. Make an alias of the new iTunes Music folder (in the shared location) and put it in the user's iTunes folder (where iTunes Music Old now resides). Rename it "iTunes Music" if necessary (you are making the alias take the place of the actual iTunes Music folder). * It is very important that the name be exact.
Start iTunes. All of your music and other media should be accessible as if the iTunes Music folder is where it used to be. To prove to yourself that the files are being accessed from the new shared location, do a Get Info on a couple of songs in iTunes. "Where" should show the file to be in the new location. To prove to yourself that you can add new content to the new location, download a free song from the iTunes Store (or a Podcast) or rip a CD. Then do a Get Info on the new item.
Up to here, I'm confident it will work, because I have done it. The rest is "theory"...
Copy the old user's /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder (except the now duplicated iTunes Music Old folder) to the shared location. You are only doing this step so that it will be available when you log in as the new user (your wife's account), which is the next step.
Log out and log in to the new account.
Copy everything in the old user's iTunes folder (that you just put in the shared location) to the new user user's /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. Replace any duplicated items. You want the new user's iTunes folder to look exactly like the old user's iTunes folder (except for iTunes Music Old). Hopefully, that iTunes Music alias will connect to the actual iTunes Music folder at the shared location. Try it. Run iTunes as the new user. Hopefully, everything looks like the old user's iTunes. Do the tests like before to prove it.
At this point, the two iTunes "looks" will start to diverge. But at least the starting point will be the same.
If something does not work as expected, log in to the old user's account. With iTunes NOT running, go to /Users/<username>/Music/iTunes folder. Delete the iTunes Music alias. Rename the iTunes Music Old folder back to iTunes Music. Everything should be back to the way it was.
If it works to your satisfaction, you can eventually delete that iTunes Music Old folder.
I don't use iPhoto, but if iTunes works, you can do the equivalent steps for iPhoto.

Sharing files and library between user accounts

I know this question was asked many times before, but I never read a clear answer. Is it possible to share the library (and files) from one user account to another user account on same computer (same apple ID in iTunes) so that when user 1 downloads music, user 2 will see the music (without any additional steps) when they log into iTunes.
The problem I ran into was user 2 had to manually add the new purchased music to their library in order to see the music. If user 2 was unaware of any purchases, user 2 unaware could potentially repurchase the same music.
My issue is my other users (family members) are not diligent when it comes to checking.
Is there an easy way to sync the two music libraries (or 1 real library) across multiple user accounts on the same PC.

Move the library to the /Users/Shared/ folder, go into each user account, launch iTunes with the Option key held down, and choose that library.
(111791)

Sharing iTunes between user accounts no longer works in iTunes 10.4

I recently upgraded to iTunes 10.4 (80). Still running Snow Leopard 10.6.8.
I have two user accounts on my MacBook Pro and my iTunes Media folder is shared i.e. /Users/Shared/ITunes/iTunes Media
This has always worked with no problems but since upgrading to iTunes 10.4 I can no longer see my iTunes content from both accounts.
First time I opened it after the upgrade it just presented me with an empty library. I eventually managed to see my iTunes content by deleting the iTunes library and xml files and relaunching iTunes. However when I quit and switch to the other user account I can't open iTunes - it keeps telling me that the library is locked or I don't have access to the files.
I have to keep manually resetting permissions on the iTunes folder & subfolders in order to be able to launch it but even when I manage to open it from the second user account I just see an empty library again.
I always used to be able to just quit iTunes in one user account and then launch it from the other; no permissions changes required. Now it just doesn't work.
Please can someone offer advice or is this a known issue with the 10.4 release?
Many thanks in advance.

I've been trying to do this same thing. My wife and I share one computer and she has her own login account to check email etc. I moved all the music, movies, videos to the shared folder. We can now "share" that music without having two iTunes media libraries. However, I want to remedy the situation of adding music from different accounts, adding and deleting playlists. How do I have that type of library data automatically get updated from account to account? I've asked this question in it's own thread about a week ago and it got buried with no responses or solutions.

Sharing Music Between Users Accounts on a Single Computer

I know that you can listen to music belonging to another user account on the same computer (as long as that user remains logged in), however, is there a way to COPY (drag and drop) music from one user account to another user account (on the same computer) similar to how it is done between multiple computers with Home Sharing?

iTunes: How to share music between different accounts on a single computer - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203 - relocating iTunes' media folder to a shared area but leaving separate library files - extra tip at https://discussions.apple.com/message/17331189

Sharing Music between User Accounts

Hello,
I've been trying to share a single itunes music folder between two accounts on the same computer. I've read dozens of threads on this topic in these forums, and still can't seem to get this to work.
Right now, I'm going back to basics and simply trying to put the iTunes music folder in a Public folder, which can be accessible by both user accounts. I've followed the instructions documented in the following article:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=93195
When I do this, I have a problem with permissions. If I move or copy the music folder on one user account to a public folder - when I switch over to the other user account, and access that public folder, some of the individual music folders within the itunes music folder are accessible, and then on others, I am denied permission. There does not seem to be anything unique about the folders that I don't have permissions on, compared to those that I do.
Any thoughts? Thanks.
ML
iMac G5, Mac Mini Intel Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Hi,
Thanks for the reply.
I did a copy paste of the iTunes Music folder into a new iTunes Music folder under Users/Shared. When I switch over to the other user account, I get the same results. Some folders are accessible and some folders I have no access. It's strange as about 25% of the music folders are No Access, and the others are readable.
Any further thoughts? Thanks,
ML

File sharing across multiple user accounts on the same machine

Hello,
I try to figure out how multiple users (my wife and I) on the same mac can have equal access to files on the local drive without granting that access to all users on that machine or even the rest of the world.
My research sofar hasn't come up with a satisfying solution. Here are the solutions that I am looking at:
1. Enable a permission system that ensures access to both users in all cases (file/directory creation, copy and move).
I only found a suitable solution for creating and copying files/directories but not for moving them.
See the following articles for reference:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/20787617#20787617 Setting up a shared structure that works e.g. for iPhoto Library but not for moving files to and from
https://discussions.apple.com/message/4005647#4005647 Helpful information on POSIX Permissions, ACL's an Permission inheritance
This would be my first choice if I can get around the problem of moving files...
2. Disk Image
Create a disk image which ignores persmissions and set permissions for the file that contains the image instead.
Read this article to get further details: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1198
This solution will work but has a few disadvatages:
There's no mutual access from multiple user accounts since an image may only be mounted by one user at a time.
One has to create a startup script that mounts the image upon login which would create a first come first serve for access to the image content.
3. Using a file sharing protocol (e.g. afp or smb) locally.
The idea behind it is to have a server providing the files mutually to multiple users one the same machine. At them moment this seems to be the most promising approach to me.
Unfortunately I can get acces from another machine but not from the same machine. Has anyone ever tried to access the file sharing (afp or smb) from the same machine on which the server is located?
Has anyone got some helpful hints for me?
Thanks in advance.

Sorry, but you didn't specify details, and it was worth checking whether or not you had overlooked this approach.
The problem you're having (as I suppose you already know) is that any new disk item inherits the permissions of the folder it is originally created in in. These permissions (sensibly enough) need owner or administrator permission to change once they've been established; that will happen when you copy a file to a new location (because that's essentially creating a new file) but not when you move it. any of the following would work:
changing the permissions on newly created files for both users so that they all explicitly give r/w access to a particular group.
writing a droplet that would change the permissions of files dropped on it and move them programmatically to the shared folder
set up a folder action or launchd job that would watch the shared folder and automatically convert permissions on files placed in it.
The last would be the approach I would take, but... which appeals to you?

Sharing Itunes between user accounts

Hi all,
I just came back to the mac and set up user accounts for myself and my wife. She tends to do most of the photo editing and I do most of the music stuff on itunes. I heard that I can set it up so that she is actually using my itunes or library even though she is on her login in. And we could do the same with the iphoto in reverse so that if I download photos it goes into the iphoto on her login. We would like to avoid having some music and pictures separated by the different logins. So my question is, is this the best way to set things up in our situation and how do I actually do it? Are there any hiccups when I sync with my iphone and she syncs with her itouch? Thanks for you help.

I've been trying to do this same thing. My wife and I share one computer and she has her own login account to check email etc. I moved all the music, movies, videos to the shared folder. We can now "share" that music without having two iTunes media libraries. However, I want to remedy the situation of adding music from different accounts, adding and deleting playlists. How do I have that type of library data automatically get updated from account to account? I've asked this question in it's own thread about a week ago and it got buried with no responses or solutions.

Help using file sharing with different users accounts on same Macbook

Hi, I just wanted a little help using the file sharing option. My wife and I had different users accounts on the same MacBook, but when I am trying to share my baby's picture from my documents folder for my wife to have the same picture, I can't find the way to do that; I am not been able to find my pictures on my wife's account. Is there any way that I could share a folder from my account and my wife to have the same files at the same time on her account?
I mean, something like the smart play list on the itunes?
Thank you

You can't do that directly unless you change permissions on your whole Documents folder which is not a good idea. Your wife can see your Documents folder from her account by going to Users/yourusername/Documents. However, this folder has no read privileges for others except yourself by default so she won't be able to open it.
rather than changing permissions on your Documents folder, you can place the pictures you want to share in Public folder in your home directory or in Users/Shared folder.

Sharing email between User accounts

Can I set up an email account so that I can access it from multiple Users? I would like to avoid having to go through the same set-up process separately for each User account? Otherwise I have to download all my old emails from the web server separately for each User account. Many thanks.

Hi,
Thanks for the reply.
I did a copy paste of the iTunes Music folder into a new iTunes Music folder under Users/Shared. When I switch over to the other user account, I get the same results. Some folders are accessible and some folders I have no access. It's strange as about 25% of the music folders are No Access, and the others are readable.
Any further thoughts? Thanks,
ML

Sharing Applications between User Accounts

Have just bought a new iMac having used windows based PC's etc....QU: I recently installed MSN Messenger whenlogged in as me (Administrator) however my wife created a USer Account and she had to re-instal MSN Messenger as it had disappeared from the box at the bottom of the screen. I am concerned that there are two applications installed where there only need be one?
iMAC

Just to expand a little on what Terence said in his post (since you are a new Mac user)...
There are two places (normally) where you store your applications (although the Mac doesn't really care where you put them. There are also THREE Library folders (if you weren't confused enough, but the first one inside the System folder should not be modified in any way).
The first, and most preferred location to store apps, is in the Applications folder on the top level of your hard drive (represented as /Applications).
The second location, for users who do not want to share their apps with other users on their machine, is in the user's own home directory (represented as /Users/YOURUSERNAME/Applications).
Normally, most applications are automatically stored in the first location (neither of my machines even have an Applications folder in my user folder - maybe because I am the only user of the machines). I am sure, though, there are some installer programs that might want to install its application in the user's home folder instead of the top level apps folder (MSN perhaps being one of them), so long story short, you should be aware of where you install your apps, so that other users can also use them.
Cheers, and welcome to the Mac family!
Thomas

Help - Sharing media between different accounts on single iMac not working

So, we have an iMac with 2 user accounts. We wanted to simply share the media between accounts and I read these instructions from Apple Support which are very straightforward and easy enough to follow.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1203
Basically, the article states you move the "iTunes Media" folder into the Public or other Shared file location and then you point each user account's copy of iTunes to that specific location for the iTunes media folder in preferences/advanced menu.
All of that was very simple and worked great, but the only problem is on the 2nd user account when I re-open iTunes, none of that media is there. I checked again inside the 2nd user iTunes preferences/advanced and it is definitely pointing to the right place. Per the specific instructions in the article, I tried both ~/Public as well as the Users/Shared too - both times I can see it fine from the main account but nothing from the 2nd user account.
Does anyone have any suggestions?? Thanks!

Adam,
iPhoto was not designed to be a multi-user application. While you can let other accounts view your photo collection by sharing, it gets messy when more than one owner has add and delete capabilities.
Having said that, you could probably do a similar thing with the iPhoto Library folder as what you've described with iTunes. Refer to the iPhoto Help topic "Moving the iPhoto Library to a new location".

File Sharing with other Users on the same iMac

I am running Snow Leopard with the latest updates... I have an iMac with 3 users. All users are administrators. I will call them User 1, 2, and 3 for this discussion. I have a file in User 1 Documents folder that I want to share with User 2 and 3. I want User 2 and 3 to have Read & Write access.
I went in System Preferences > Sharing. I checked the box labeled File Sharing. I clicked the "+" button in the "Shared Folders" field and added the Documents folder from User 1 account. I then clicked the "+" button in the "Users" field and add User 2 and 3 with Read & Write access.
I then restarted my iMac and logged into User 2 and 3 account and could not access User 1 Documents folder in Finder. Is there something I am doing wrong? I do have the Firewall turned on, however File Sharing (AFP) is set to Allow Incoming Connections.
Can someone help me here?
Thanks in advance!
Message was edited by: Michael710

An administrative user doesn't have access to much more than a standard user - they just have membership in the admin group and the ability to elevate their privileges to access more things.
The OS is designed to restrict access between accounts, so the usual way to share things is to put them in places where the desired users have access. As mentioned, this can be the /Users/Shared folder - nothing more needs to be done to access items here, since all users on the machine can access this folder (each user also has their own particular shared /Public folder that is accessible to them).
Now, if your issue is not about accessing the files, but rather being able to +do something+ with them, one user normally doesn't have permissions to modify another user's documents since they are not the owner. This can be dealt with by either having the owner give the desired permissions, or adding +Access Control List+ entries to the folder to give additional access to items copied (not moved) there - a user's */Public/Drop Box* folder has ACL entries like this, for example.
You can use the Terminal to add ACL entries, but if you aren't familiar with using the application (or the chmod command), you might take a look at TinkerTool system for a GUI solution - I thought it was worth the price just for this.

File sharing problems between Vista 64 bit and iMac

I have a week-old iMac and am trying to completely network it with my wife's new Windows Vista 64 bit Dell Studio laptop. Everything seems to be working correctly with the exception of not being able to directly log into the iMac from the laptop even though the iMac is visible in the Windows Vista Network screen. File sharing is turned on with all user accounts active. Both computers are visible on the network. The Vista laptop has Windows firewall turned off and McAfee Security Center firewall turned on.
Help and suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks!

Dave Barnes wrote:
Some help at http://www.geeksrus.com/2007/03/17/connecting-to-mac-file-sharing-via-vista/ perhaps.
That is an excellent reference! Just another reason why Vista is trash.

Personal File Sharing failure between Leopard MBP and Tiger iMac

Hi,
I am attempting to give the iMac access to files on the Leopard using Personal File Sharing. Personal File Sharing is turned on on the MBP. The firewall on the MBP has been variously set for Essential Services Only and turned off. The firewall on the iMac is off (it has no internet connection). I have tried both encrypted and unencrypted ad-hoc wireless networking on various channels. I have tried ethernet. The results are always the same:
1) the MBP will appear in the Network folder of the iMac, but any attempt to connect fails. I am unable even to reach a Drop Box.
2) the iMac appears in the Shared section of the Sidebar on the MBP, and connections of all kind work without problems
I have no internet connection in the house and am unable to try connecting both Macs to the same WiFi network for testing purposes. I have tried pinging each machine from the other using Network Utility, with failure reported in every case ---however, I'm led to believe this is not unusual in small network circumstances.
One other piece of info that may be relevant: I am also struggling to have my iPod touch found by my MBP when attempting to use the WebDAV protocol to share files with Files Lite. My iMac connects to Files Lite without issue. Stanza Desktop also refuses to find Stanza. Cyberduck will find Files Lite on the network from the MBP (the only app to recognise it in any way from my MBP), but will consistently fail to connect. Perhaps this is related?
Any help would be welcome. I can provide more information as needed. I have only offered the information I thought would be useful, and that fits within my layman's understanding of networking.
Thanks.
S.

Hi,
Well, it's all working fine now. Seems I /hadn't/ tried turning off the firewall on the MBP. The PFS now works with the firewall off or with "Set access for specific services and applications", but not "Essential services only".
*shrugs* I was so sure I'd tried it with the firewall off…
So, thanks! All is now kushti. I may have to grumble to myself a little (and ultimately to Apple) about the lack of co-operation between the firewall and the Sharing prefs, and what I perceive as a poverty (or at least poor layout) of information in the firewall settings pane, though. I mean, why can't the firewall automatically choose the correct setting depending on the Sharing preferences? Or, at least, provide a pop-up that such a change is necessary? Hmm…
Ta!
S.
PS: FYI, "guest" sharing was already enabled, presumably by default.

Basic File Sharing question between user accounts on my iMac

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for