Apr 15, 2008
Turn your old PC into a File Server
If you want to give that old computer new life on your home network,
try using it as a file server for music or pictures or whatever so that
no matter where in the house you are you can access your massive
digital library from any computer. Here’s what you’ll need
to do…
Connection
You’ll need a home network. If you don’t you’ll need
to buy a home network router ($50–$75 USD from DLink, Linksys,
Netgear, etc.) and connect it to you high speed Internet connection and
connect all your computers to it, including the old computer you are
going to turn into a server.
Requirements
You will need to make sure that there’s enough hard drive space
for all your files. Really old computers will have hard drives that are
less than 10 GB, so you might consider adding a new larger hard drive.
An old Pentium II or better with a 10 GB hard drive is probably your
best bet.
Network Card
Check to see that the computer has a network card so it can be
connected to the network. Most older computers will have 10 Megabit
Ethernet cards which should be fine, but you might consider upgrading
to a newer 100 Mbit or Gigabit card.
Sharing
1) Put all your files on the computer in a folder called FILES on the
Desktop (or you could name it DATA or anything else…just make it
memorable and one word. In the example below I’ll continue to use
the name FILES.)
2) For easy identification on the network you might consider renaming
the computer SERVER (or FILESERVER) in Control Panel under Network and
Identification Tab (in Windows 98).
3) Right click on the FILES folder to activate sharing and give the
shared folder a name on the network. You may have to run the file and
printer sharing wizard first then right click and activate sharing
after this.
4) On the SERVER computer click START then Run then type cmd (if you
have XP or Me) or command (if you have Windows 95/98) to get a DOS box.
5) At the C:> prompt type ipconfig (and hit return) to see what the computer’s IP address is.
Acquire
Now go the computer on your network where you want to play the files
on. Start Windows Explorer. Here we’ll assign the SERVER computer
as a network drive. You have a C drive which is your main hard drive.
You have a D drive wihich is usually a CD or DVD drive. Your SERVER can
become yet another drive letter. Maybe your Z: drive or your X: drive.
In Windows Explorer at the top click the Tools menu then click Map
Network Drive option. Under “Drive:” choose a drive letter
that the SERVER will be assigned. It can be any unassigned drive
letter. Z: or X: or whatever you want.
In the “Folder” field, type the IP address of the SERVER
and add the name of the folder that you shared. It should look
something like: \\192.168.1.104\FILES. Then click Finish.
If you named the computer DATA, you could also use \\SERVER\DATA\
Now all those files are now accessible via the network as your Z drive. Enjoy
If you want to give that old computer new life on your home network,
try using it as a file server for music or pictures or whatever so that
no matter where in the house you are you can access your massive
digital library from any computer. Here’s what you’ll need
to do…
Connection
You’ll need a home network. If you don’t you’ll need
to buy a home network router ($50–$75 USD from DLink, Linksys,
Netgear, etc.) and connect it to you high speed Internet connection and
connect all your computers to it, including the old computer you are
going to turn into a server.
Requirements
You will need to make sure that there’s enough hard drive space
for all your files. Really old computers will have hard drives that are
less than 10 GB, so you might consider adding a new larger hard drive.
An old Pentium II or better with a 10 GB hard drive is probably your
best bet.
Network Card
Check to see that the computer has a network card so it can be
connected to the network. Most older computers will have 10 Megabit
Ethernet cards which should be fine, but you might consider upgrading
to a newer 100 Mbit or Gigabit card.
Sharing
1) Put all your files on the computer in a folder called FILES on the
Desktop (or you could name it DATA or anything else…just make it
memorable and one word. In the example below I’ll continue to use
the name FILES.)
2) For easy identification on the network you might consider renaming
the computer SERVER (or FILESERVER) in Control Panel under Network and
Identification Tab (in Windows 98).
3) Right click on the FILES folder to activate sharing and give the
shared folder a name on the network. You may have to run the file and
printer sharing wizard first then right click and activate sharing
after this.
4) On the SERVER computer click START then Run then type cmd (if you
have XP or Me) or command (if you have Windows 95/98) to get a DOS box.
5) At the C:> prompt type ipconfig (and hit return) to see what the computer’s IP address is.
Acquire
Now go the computer on your network where you want to play the files
on. Start Windows Explorer. Here we’ll assign the SERVER computer
as a network drive. You have a C drive which is your main hard drive.
You have a D drive wihich is usually a CD or DVD drive. Your SERVER can
become yet another drive letter. Maybe your Z: drive or your X: drive.
In Windows Explorer at the top click the Tools menu then click Map
Network Drive option. Under “Drive:” choose a drive letter
that the SERVER will be assigned. It can be any unassigned drive
letter. Z: or X: or whatever you want.
In the “Folder” field, type the IP address of the SERVER
and add the name of the folder that you shared. It should look
something like: \\192.168.1.104\FILES. Then click Finish.
If you named the computer DATA, you could also use \\SERVER\DATA\
Now all those files are now accessible via the network as your Z drive. Enjoy
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