I have a folder on a Windows 10 desktop computer. I want to share this folder with another user through an ethernet link consisting of just the two computers cabled to a switch. The other user is an account on a Linux Mint laptop.

I don't want to share the folder with Everyone. I would like, if possible, to specify permissions for this user.

So I am looking at the Windows 10 Permissions dialog for the shared folder. I click Add. This gives me a dialog providing an opportunity to Select Users or Groups. I click the Locations button. It shows only the Windows computer. Ping confirms the existence of a connection with the Linux machine. I assume I won't be able to add the Linux user until I can add his machine.

I'm not sure whether there are steps I can take, in Linux and/or in Windows, to make that machine and user visible in that Windows dialog.

you need to check samba suite, that can handle such things.

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With peer to peer sharing your selecting a user on the Windows PC not linux. The linux PC is connecting to the Windows PC using the Windows username and password.

https://www.howtogeek.com/176471/how...ows-and-linux/

In general there are two parts to samba/cifs/windows shares. One is windows permissions as in file based and two is share permissions.

In a windows server you tend to allow file all and restrict based on share user.

Thanks, all. That How-To Geek article says, "In the permissions window, you can restrict access to the folder to certain accounts." But it doesn't say how to identify or limit access to any particular account on the Linux machine. That's the unknown here.

Your limiting the share to a particular user on the Windows box. The linux user connects to the share using the windows username and password.

The easiest way to connect to the share is using your file browser which would require you enter your Windows username and password. The file browser is using a virtual filesystem which isn't shown as a regular mounted filesystem and not accessible by other users.

OK, I may be misunderstanding something. If I'm on a Windows system, I can limit access to a specific user on that system. As the How-To Geek article says, I can give permissions to Everyone. But I don't have to. The Windows system can see specific Windows user accounts on that system, and I can limit access to those users.

I think that's also true if the Windows account in question is located on another Windows machine within the network. I think this Windows machine can look for that Windows account, can see it, and can assign permissions to that remote Windows account, while continuing to exclude access by other, unwanted accounts.

But if the remote account is on a Linux machine, I think you're telling me that this is not an option. In that case, the only way to give that remote account access to the shared folder is to give access permissions to Everyone, as the Geek article says. There is still the hope that no unwanted account will have the password. But if they do acquire the password, they're in, because I've opened the door to Everyone, as long as they have the password.

So then, if there are user accounts within the Windows network owned by people who have the password, but whom I would prefer to exclude, I can't because, there again, the door is open to Everyone who has the password.

Does that sound right?

if you want to handle linux users (or connect linux/windows users to each other) you will need to use samba. And also probably you need to create a windows domain and add both your windows host and linux to that domain. (samba can do that).

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OK. Sorry to make you repeat. I appreciate it. I believe that answers the question.

As I understand it, the answer is as follows: there are two ways to allow the user on the Linux Mint laptop to access the shared folder on the Windows machine. One is to grant permissions to Everyone, and that automatically includes the Linux Mint user. The other is to install Samba, and then configure that to indicate which Linux accounts can access the shared folder on the Windows machine.

No. The user account must exist on the windows machine being connected to.
It doesn’t matter if the remote machine is linux or windows.

If the machine being connected to is part of a windows domain, you can use a domain account, as that effectively “exists on that machine being connected to”.

Samba can be configured to emulate the functionality of a windows domain, that you could then connect nect both machines to, but that is a technical rabbithole that you really don’t want to go down.

If, as it seems, you are not part of a domain, you can connect as an existing user on the windows box, or, make a new account for the remote user to connect as.

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OK. That's a new dimension for me. So on the Windows machine, I create a new user account; I give that account permissions; and then the remote Linux user logs into that account. In which case it is not necessary to give Everyone permissions, as the How-To Geek article recommends; I'm back to the preferred scenario of giving permissions for a specific account.

If there's an article that presents this information step by step, I would be glad to see it.

I have not found a good step by step article.

When logged in as your specific user on the linux box you can access the Windows share from the file browser which I assume is Nautilus by browsing the network i.e. clicking on "Browse Network" or you can directly enter the share in the URL text box of the format smb://server_name/share. You will be asked for the username and password for the share and if all goes well you will be connected and see the files from the Windows box.

You can create a shortcut and save the username password in the file browser for quick accessibility. This shortcut is saved in the users home directory which can not be accessed by other users.

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OK. Thanks. That works.