I'm trying to set up a direct connection between my Windows PC and a Linux Mint machine using a LAN cable to transfer some really large files. I have Windows 10 on one machine and Linux Mint 22.2 (Cinnamon desktop) on the other. Here's what I've done so far on the Windows side:
- In the Control Panel, I accessed Network and Internet, then went to Network and Sharing Center.
- I changed the advanced sharing settings to enable Public Folder Sharing, turned off password protected sharing, and turned on network discovery.
- I saved the changes and connected a LAN cable to both machines' Ethernet ports.
- On the Windows machine, I went to Ethernet Properties and set the IP address to 192.168.1.2 with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0 and a default gateway pointing to the Linux PC (192.168.1.1).
On the Linux machine, I followed these steps:
- Accessed Edit Connections to create a new Ethernet connection.
- Set the IP address to 192.168.1.1, netmask to 255.255.255.0, and left the gateway blank with the DNS Server set to 8.8.8.8.
- I saved the connection and shared a folder by right-clicking and enabling Local Network Share.
After all this, I tried to see the Linux machine from the Windows File Browser, but it doesn't show up. I can ping both machines successfully, but I can't see each other to share files. Is there something I'm missing, possibly related to the firewall or Windows Defender? Any help would be greatly appreciated!
4 Answers
First off, make sure you're using the right type of Ethernet cable. Regular cables usually work fine for modern devices due to auto-sensing, but if you have a really old setup, a crossover cable might be needed. Also, check if the firewall settings on both machines are set to allow the connection; they might be blocking it. You could also consider using SSH to transfer files easily between the two if that's an option for you.
You're definitely on the right track with the ping tests since they indicate that both devices are connected. As for file sharing, once you confirm they can ping each other, getting Windows network shares to work is the next step. It's a separate issue that often requires fiddling with sharing permissions on Windows, so don't get discouraged!
If you can't see the Linux machine from Windows, remember that after changing network settings on Linux, restarting the network services can help. You can also try enabling Internet Connection Sharing on your Windows machine, which might help both machines to recognize each other on the network.
It might simplify things to connect both PCs to a router instead of directly with a cable. This way, you can avoid messing with all the manual IP settings and sharing configurations. Alternatively, if you have a large USB drive, copying files onto that might be a quicker solution!
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