Connect desktop to laptop wirelessly?
 

I have an internet connection on both my laptop and desktop through the same router. I do not wish to screw that up. All I want to do is transfer files from the desktop to the laptop via the wireless connection. How do I do this? I have never set up any kind of network or lan before.. wired or otherwise.

I have read a bunch of post on the net but I am unsure the best way to do this. it's confusing to me as there seems to be lots of different opinions.

What OS?

Usually network sharing is the easiest to go with.

I am using win 7 on both the desktop and the laptop. Thr router i have is a modem router combo.. its the 2 wire Gateway 2701HG-B.

Create a homegroup using your desktop, it will ask you to create a password for the homegroup. Use your laptop to join in the homegroup using that password. I think you should able to share your files using the public folders now, just put what you want into that folders.

Yup exactly what Kid says.

Cool but i dont know if i can use that.. i have files all over this drive I need to find and copy.. it would be kinda impractical to have to move them all to a certain public folder.

Do i have another option?

depends on the permissions you set. If you are behind a protected router you can share both C drives and swap away.

Thats what i want to do. How do i know if thats a viable option? How do i know if i have those permissions or am able to set them?

when you have the homegroup set, there is a place to pick those settings (left side, advanced permissions) of who has what permissions or "everyone" then just right click on what you want to share and tell it to share.

Do I have to set that on both computers?

For sharing, no. For the network settings, yes make sure they both have discovery on and such.

After you share the C drive of one, the other can use it with just a click or two to get through the network/"PC name here"/C: if you get my drift. Both c: drives do not need shared if you are only pulling from one drive.

I got you. Thanks both of you. I will give it a go!

Wireless = Headaches

Im sharing files between my laptop and main PC using advanced sharing. All I did was setup a user account with the same name and password on both PCs, right clicked->properties on whatever folder or drive I want to share, under the sharing tab select advanced sharing, click the share folder box, click permission and remove everyone, then added my user account name.

Sounds like a lot, but it isn't. As of now the transfers are faster than homegroup, but over G speeds are nothing like wired.

YAY! I got it up and running.. er.. But i still cant seem to access the whole drive from one to the other. Under Homegroup I can access documents, music, pictures and video.. and under Network I can access th same but also with a desktop and downloads folder.. but those arent the desktop and downloads folder I use. They are empty.

How can i make it see my entire C drive on both ends?

All the options in the Advanced Settings are checked to share everything for both Home and Public.


EDIT:

I got it! i forgot to set the permission on the C drives themselves to share. All working good now! Also i see i have to set permissions on all folders I want to share.. a pain but worth it.. i thought by selecting C, all subfolders would be shared as well.

So, theonedub,

What your saying is you get faster transfers with your method? Why would homegroup be a slowdown?

O.k. Problem.. for my downloads and desktop folders, I have enabled sharing on them, and they still cant be accessed even though they are seen on the laptop. i must be missing something someplace.

I started using Homegroup some time ago, and the speeds were slow. Made a thread about it, tried some settings- still slow. I saw a thread about sharing the other day by doing what I relayed and thought why not give it a shot. My speeds have doubled now :D Could be completely unrelated, but thats how it worked out for me :)

The way I described allows the entire drive to be shared without going through each folder.

Homegroup/public folders are more secure.

After you finished setting up your homegroup, you can share any folders you want by right click on it , you will see the Share With option (Homegroup read only or write or to specific user). It's easy and secure.

I may have to try that if i cant get my desktop and downloads folders to share properly.. those are the main two folders ( and of course all sub folders inside them) I need to have working.

Bah.. off to bed now.. anyone has more great tips, I will read em in the morning. LOL

Sharing the way I described is secure as well. It requires you to use either the same user account or put in your username and password before accessing files. From what I was able to find out online, Homegroup is like the 'File Sharing for Dummies' method for those not familiar with networking and sharing.

It's not necessary creating accounts with same id or pass in both PC.

I believe MS network policies require each PC to have a password protected account to access each other shared files (do not need same id or pass). You can not access any files until you create a password for your admin account.

When it asked for pass, it asks for the id and pass of the account on the pc you're trying to access. Beside, typing pass everytime is not convenience. Using pre-config and built-in options are more easy to change and remember, and probably the most less complicated way.

Joining the homegroup, enter pass once, and that's it. :wtf:

I did mention that you can use the same account info OR enter the username and pass each time. If you use the same info, there is no need to enter any information when you go to access your files. Its a click away just like in a Homegroup.

I think we are getting caught up in semantics. Both are options with the same end result- its just a matter of preference. The only reason I mentioned this alternative was to give him a heads up on the possible slow down that I saw when using homegroup that I do not see now.

O.k. guys this is strange.. Kid, I tried to right click the folders and share them from the right click contect menu.. next thing i knew the desktop put up a screen saying sharing files please wait.. (or something) ...after it finished, i was able to see them on the laptop.

But.. it only did this from right click menu.. shouldn't it have done it when i just went to the folder and enabled sharing through properties?

How do I now wirelessly add an XP to this home network? It does not use Homegroup.