How to share your hard drive in a network

Cloud storage is expensive, but it's not the only
way to share a bunch of files across many
devices. Instead, you can use an external hard
drive and your router to create networked storage
accessible to anyone on your Wi-Fi network.
When it's set up, any files stored on that drive can
be accessed by all devices on your network --
even phones and tablets . Here's how to set it up
on Windows.
Step 1: Choose your drive
The drive you share can be as small as thumb
drive, or as large as a 3TB external hard drive.
Check your router's manual to find out if there are
any storage limitations, since some routers have a
storage cap.
Once you've chosen your drive, plug it in.
Step 2: Enable USB drive sharing
On any computer connected to your Wi-Fi
network, launch a browser, and navigate to your
router's IP address. You can find this on the back
of the router, in the device manual, or by
searching for it online. In most cases, it looks like
192.168.X.X.
When the page loads, you'll be asked to log in
with your username and password. If you
changed it, you should know it. If you didn't, it's
probably still admin (username), and admin
(password).
Those who fall into the latter category, please
change your password as soon as you can, and
before proceeding to the next step.
Every router's interface is different, but if yours
has a USB port, you'll find a link entitled
something like File Sharing under the
Administrator settings. In this window, enable the
file sharing server (also called SAMBA). Apply the
settings, and exit.
Screenshot/Sharon Profis
Step 3: Access the drive
You're now ready to read and write to your
attached hard drive. Open a file explorer window,
and navigate to the Network folder in the left
sidebar. Then, clear out the path at the top of the
explorer window, and enter \\[your IP address].
So, for example, it might look like: \\192.168.1.1
Screenshot/Sharon Profis
With that, your drive will appear. Open it to
access its contents, just like any other folder. If
you're asked to log in, simply use your router's
login credentials (the same one used to log into
the Web interface.)
If you plan on leaving your hard drive attached,
so that you can easily access it from any Explorer
window. To do that, right-click the drive and
select "Map network drive..." Give it a name, and
the folder will appear in the sidebar.
Screenshot/Sharon Profis
To access the drive on other computers on the
network, repeat step 3.