Connecting to a Windows Share with PIXEL

To connect to a Windows share from Raspbian with PIXEL, follow this procedure:

1. Open the distro’s file manager.

2. Enter smb://servername/sharename. (Replace servername/sharename with actual server name and share name: see Figure 4-1.) If you prefer, you can also enter smb://WORKGROUP (use the actual name of your workgroup) to see a list of servers with PIXEL or FedBerry. You can then navigate to the server needed.

   

   Figure 4-1. Entering the path to a shared folder on a server on the local network

3. When prompted, provide the username and password for the sharename (Figure 4-2).

   

   Figure 4-2. Logging into the server

4. Select how long to retain the password, then click Connect.

5. The share opens (Figure 4-3).

   

   Figure 4-3. Contents of the share as viewed in PIXEL

Some other file managers , such as the one in Ubuntu MATE (Figure 4-4), can display network shares without the need to enter a path.

Figure 4-4. Navigating to a Windows share with Ubuntu MATE

Connecting to a Windows Share from the Command Line with smbclient

To connect to a Windows share from the command line, use smbclient. This might not be preinstalled on minimal distros for Raspberry Pi, but it can be installed from your distro’s package manager.

To determine if smbclient is already installed, run it from the command line. If you get a command not found error, you will need to install smbclient. From a terminal prompt, run sudo apt-get install smbclient. To connect with a remote server and download a file :

1. Enter smbclient//servername/sharename.

2. When prompted, enter the password for the username .

3. When the smb: \>? prompt appears, you are logged into the remote computer. You can use commands to list files (ls) and other file management commands.

4. To copy a file from the remote computer: enter get filename.ext.

5. To close the connection, enter quit.

Connecting to Different Workgroups

During the login process , you can specify the name of the workgroup you are connecting with. If you are using a file manager, the login window prompts you for the workgroup or domain name (refer to Figure 4-2). You can replace the default WORKGROUP name with the name of the workgroup you are connecting with. Some file managers may use Samba as the default domain. With the command line smbclient, the -W=workgroup option is used to set the workgroup if it is different from the default name WORKGROUP. When connecting to a Windows share, it may not be necessary to specify the workgroup. Try the connection without specifying the workgroup name.

The situation is much different if you want to configure your Raspberry Pi to receive connections from other computers. You must install Samba’s server features. And, if the workgroup is not named WORKGROUP, you must also create (or modify) the /etc/smb.conf file to indicate the correct workgroup name.

Connecting to an OSX (MacOS) Share from Raspbian PIXEL

The process of connecting to an OSX (MacOS ) share from Raspbian Pixel is similar to the process for connecting to a Windows share, but with one major difference: use Apple File Protocol (afp://) instead of smb://.:

1. Open the distro’s file manager.

2. Enter afp://servername.

3. When prompted, provide the username and password for the sharename (Figure 4-5).

   

   Figure 4-5. Logging into a MacOS (OSX) share with Raspbian with PIXEL

4. Select how long to retain the password, then click Connect.

5. Select a share.

6. Log in again if prompted, using the same username and password as in Step 3.

7. The share opens (Figure 4-6).

   

   Figure 4-6. Working with a MacOS (OSX) share with Raspbian with PIXEL

Connecting to a SanDisk Connect Wireless Flash Drive

The SanDisk Connect wireless flash drive supports WebDAV for read access, so you can access its contents via your Raspberry Pi’s web browser. To configure the device to be available on an existing wireless network:

1. Install the SanDisk Connect app on an iOS or Android smartphone or tablet.

2. Start the app and connect to the SanDisk wireless flash drive.

3. Open the Settings menu.

4. Turn on Internet connection.

5. Connect to the wireless network you normally use. Provide the encryption key for the network if prompted.

For details, see https://kb.sandisk.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3802/ .

To determine the IP address for the wireless flash drive :

1. Start the app and connect to the SanDisk wireless flash drive.

2. Open the Settings menu.

3. Tap About.

4. Tap WFD in the Drives listing.

5. Note the drive’s IP address.

To connect to the wireless flash drive:

1. Start your Raspberry Pi and open the web browser.

2. Enter the IP address and file location: http://192.168.x.x/wfd/ (use the actual IP address values in place of the example values). See Figure 4-7.

   

   Figure 4-7. Connecting to a SanDisk Connect wireless flash drive using the Chromium browser

3. The folders on the drive are visible. Open a folder to view, open, or download drive contents.

Connecting to a Seagate Wireless Plus Drive

The Seagate Wireless Plus drive is primarily designed to work as a wireless media source for Android and iOS mobile devices. However, it also supports uploading as well as downloading through its web interface. You can connect to the drive wirelessly and also access your normal wireless network. Here’s how.

1. Turn on the Seagate Wireless Plus drive.

2. The green light is the power light; the blue light is the Wi-Fi light.

3. When the Wi-Fi light remains on (stops blinking), open the Wi-Fi connection dialog on your Raspberry Pi and click the Seagate Wireless FMP icon (Figure 4-8).

   

   Figure 4-8. Connecting to a Seagate Wireless Plus drive using Raspbian with PIXEL’s wireless connection manager

4. After verifying your connection, open your web browser and navigate to http://172.25.0.1.

5. The Seagate Wireless Plus drive opens. To reconnect to the Internet, click the Wi-Fi icon (Figure 4-9).

   

   Figure 4-9. Preparing to connect to the default wireless network through the Seagate Wireless Plus’s network dialog

6. Choose your wireless network.

7. Enter the encryption key (wireless password). If you plan to use this drive frequently, click the “Connect to this network automatically” box. If you are using the drive on a public network, click the “Secure the network” box.

8. Click “Join network.”

9. Click OK. When the screen refreshes, you are connected to the drive and to your normal wireless network.

You can view, play back, or download content from the Seagate Wireless Plus, but, unlike the SanDisk Wireless drive, you can also upload content to the drive from the Raspberry Pi:

1. Click the upload icon (refer to Figure 4-9).

2. Click Browse.

3. Navigate to the location of the file you want to upload .

4. Click the file, then click Open.

5. Click Upload. The dialog box confirms that the file is uploaded.

As long as you are connected wirelessly to the Seagate Wireless Plus, it will pass Internet traffic to and from your wireless network. When the drive is turned off, you must reconnect manually to your normal wireless network. The drive can be configured through its web interface (change the default SSID, require passwords for connection, and so on).

Configuring CUPS

After installing CUPS, you need to add your user account (pi) to the default user group created by CUPS (lpadmin):

sudo usermod -a -G lpadmin pi                

CUPS is configured through your web browser. By default, you must use the web browser on your Raspberry Pi, using the loopback interface. 631 is the post number used by CUPS. Either of the following addresses in your web browser will start CUPS:

http://127.0.0.1:631

http://localhost:631

The CUPS opening dialog (Figure 4-10) has options for users, administrators, and developers. To add a printer, open the Administration tab . Follow these steps to add a printer :

Figure 4-10. Selecting a network printer with CUPS

1. Click Add Printer.

2. Log in with username and password to continue.

3. Select the printer. Note that physical printers, network printers, and print protocols are all available. In this example, I selected the Epson XP-800 series printer (Figure 4-10).

4. Confirm or change the name, description, and location (optional).

5. Click the box to share the printer with others (use only with a locally connected printer).

6. Click Continue.

7. Select your printer driver (Figure 4-11).

   

   Figure 4-11. Selecting a printer driver with CUPS

8. Click Add Printer. The Set Default Options dialog (next section) opens.

Setting Printer Defaults

The Set Default Options for your printer are displayed next. Select the default paper size, paper or media type, and other settings you will most typically use. When you are finished selecting options, click Set Default Options.

Testing Your Printer

To determine if you can connect to the printer, open the Maintenance menu and select Print Self Test Page. The printer will print a self-test page , such as a printhead color pattern or other default (varies with printer). To test fonts, colors, and graphics settings, create a document and print it.

Creating Local Users

If you want to create additional users that can connect to a network share on your Raspberry Pi, you must first of all create them as local users. In the following example, replace username with the username you want to use, such as marcus:

1. sudo adduser username.

2. At the prompt Enter new UNIX password:, type the password you want to use.

3. At the prompt Retype new UNIX password:, retype the same password.

4. When prompted, you can enter user information (Full Name, Room Number, Work Phone, Home Phone, Other) or just press the Enter key.

5. Press Y if the information is correct. The new user is created (see Figure 4-12).

   

   Figure 4-12. Setting up a new local user

Creating a Network User

To make the user pi a network user:

1. sudo smbpasswd -a pi

2. At the prompt New smb password:, type a password

3. At the prompt Retype new smb password:., retype the same password

Repeat for any users you created in the Creating Local Users section.

Configuring smb.conf

After installing Samba and setting up users, we need to determine which folder we want to share. Only the files and folders in the folder we share will be available to others on the network. You can create a new folder or use an existing folder, such as the user’s home folder.

Samba has many configuration options. Some, but not nearly all, are stored as comments in the Samba configuration file /etc/samba/smb.conf. We need to configure the following:

• Workgroup name

• WINS support

• Folder to share

• How folder will be shared

To edit /etc/samba/smb.conf, open a terminal session and run this command:

sudo texteditor /etc/samba/smb.conf

(replace texteditor with leafpad, nano, or your preferred text editor)

The following statements need to be uncommented or added to smb.conf. To uncomment a statement , remove the ; from the front of the statement:

workgroup = WORKGROUP
wins support = yes

If you created a folder called share , add the following section into the ===Share Definitions=== section to complete the needed configuration:

[pihome]
 comment = Pihome
 path = /home/pi/share
 nrowseable = Yes
 writeable = Yes
 only guest = no
 create mask = 0777
 directory mask = 0777
 public = no

Here’s what each statement means:

• [pihome] - The following statements set up a shared folder on your Raspberry Pi

• comment = Pihome

• path = /home/pi/share - The folder being shared (share) is located beneath the pi folder; change share to the actual name of the folder

• browseable = Yes - The folder specified with path= can be viewed

• writeable = Yes - The folder specified with path= can be written (files saved, deleted, or changed by a network user) to as well as read (omit this for a read-only share)

• only guest = no - Disables guest access

• create mask = 0777 - Enables read/write/execute permission to all users who can log into the share; change to 0700 to make the share read-only

• directory mask = 0777 - Enables read/write/execute permission to all users who can log into the share; change to 0700 to make the share read-only

• public = no - Disables public access

To enable each user to connect to its home folders with read/write access, make the following changes to the [Homes] section:

[Homes]
 Comment = Home Directories
 Browseable = no
 read-only = no
 writeable=Yes
 create mask=0775
 directory mask=0775
 valid users = %S
 username map = /etc/samba/sambausers

After completing these edits, save your changes. As a result of these changes, any smb (network) user will see two shares when they connect to the Raspberry Pi: the share folder and their personal folder (refer to Figure 4-15).

Logging into the Raspberry Pi

Here’s how to log into your new Raspberry Pi share from a remote computer on the LAN:

1. Open your system’s file manager.

2. Open Network.

3. Open RASPBERRYPI.

4. Enter your username and password when prompted and click OK (Figure 4-13).

   

   Figure 4-13. Logging into a Raspberry Pi using Windows

5. Open your share (Figure 4-14).

   

   Figure 4-14. Selecting from the remote user’s home folder or the common share folder using Windows

   

   Figure 4-15. Configuring login information for the Raspberry Pi shares