Manage Server Folders in Windows Server Essentials

Applies To: Windows Server 2016 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 Essentials

As a server administrator, you can manage access to any server folders (known as shared folders when accessed from the Launchpad, Remote Web Access, My Server app for Windows Phone, or My Server app for Windows 8) on the server by using the tasks on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard, allowing users varying levels of access to a variety of files.

The following topics provide information that will help you understand, create, and manage server folders:

Manage server folders using the Dashboard

Windows Server Essentials makes it possible to perform common administrative tasks by using the Dashboard. The Server Folders page of the Dashboard provides the following:

A list of server folders, which displays:

The name of the folder

A description of the folder

The location of the folder

The amount of free space that is available at the folder location

Brief status information about any tasks that are being performed on the folder; the Status field is blank if the folder is healthy, and if no tasks are running

A details pane that may provide additional information about a selected folder

A tasks pane that includes a set of folder-related administrative tasks

The following table describes the various server folder tasks that are available on the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard. Most of the tasks are folder-specific, and they are only visible when you select a folder in the list.

Server folder tasks on the Dashboard

Task name	Description
Open the folder	Displays the contents of the selected folder in File Explorer (called Windows Explorer in previous versions of Windows).
Delete the folder	Enables you to delete a user-created folder. This task is not available for the default folders that server installation creates.
Move the folder	Opens a wizard that helps you move a server folder to a new location.
Stop sharing the folder	Stops sharing the selected folder but does not delete it. When the folder is no longer shared, it does not appear in the Dashboard. This task is not available for the default folders that server installation creates.
View the folder properties	Displays the properties for a selected folder, and enables you to:

— Change the name of user-created folders.

— Change the description for a selected folder.

— View the size of the folder.

— Open the selected folder in File Explorer.

— Specify user account access permissions for a selected folder.

— Hide a selected folder from Remote Web Access and Web Service applications.

— Specify folder quota. Add a folder Helps you create a new server folder and assign the level of access allowed for each user account. Understanding Server Folders Opens a Help topic on the Internet that describes the use and functionality of server folders.

Manage access to server folders

Windows Server Essentials enables you to store files that are located on your client computers to a central location by using server folders. Storing your files in server folders ensures that your files are in a place that is always accessible in a secure manner from each client.

Using server folders to store your files enables you to:

Back up the server folder by using Server Backup and Restore to help protect against total server failure.

Access files that are stored on the server folder from any location by using an Internet Browser via Remote Web Access, or via the My Server apps for Windows Phone and Windows 8.

Access the new server folder from any client computer.

You can manage access to any server folders on the server by using the tasks on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard. The following table lists the server folders that are created by default when you install Windows Server Essentials or turn on media streaming on your server.

Server Folder Name	Description
Client Computer Backups	By default, Windows Server Essentials creates client computer backups that are stored in this folder. The settings for Client Computer Backups can be modified by the network administrator.
Company	Used to store and access documents related to your organization by network users.
File History Backups	By default, Windows Server Essentials uses File History to create file backups that are stored in this folder. These File History settings can be modified by network administrators.
Folder Redirection	Used to store and access folders that are set up for folder redirection by network users.
Users	Used to store and access files by network users. A user-specific folder is automatically generated in the Users server folder for every network user account that you create.
Music	Used to store and access music files by network users. This folder is available when you turn on media sharing.
Pictures	Used to store and access picture files by network users. This folder is available when you turn on media sharing.
Recorded TV	Used to store and access recorded TV programs by network users. This folder is available when you turn on media sharing.
Videos	Used to store and access video files by network users. This folder is available when you turn on media sharing.

To hide or set permissions for server folders, or to modify server folder properties, see the following procedures:

Hide server folders

As a network administrator, you can choose to hide any of these server folders and prevent them from being displayed on the Remote Web Access website or Web Services applications (such as My Server).

You must be a network administrator to perform this procedure.

To hide server folders from being displayed in Remote Web Access

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

Click STORAGE, and then click Server Folders.

In the list view, select the server folder whose properties you want to view or modify.

In the Tasks pane, click View folder properties.

In Properties, click Sharing, select Hide this folder from Remote Web Access and Web Service applications, and then click Apply.

Set permissions to server folders

For any additional server folder that you add on the server by using the Dashboard, you can choose three different access settings for it:

Read/Write

Choose this setting if you want to allow this person to create, change, and delete any files in the server folder.

Read-only

Choose this setting if you want to allow this person to only read the files in the server folder. Users with read-only access cannot create, change, or delete any files in the server folder.

No access

Choose this setting if you do not want this person to access any files in the server folder.

The permissions that are displayed in the folder properties represent only the users that are managed by the Dashboard. They do not include user permissions such as groups or service accounts, or include any permission that may be set on the folder by using other native tools, or include users that were not added through the Dashboard.

You must be a network administrator to perform this procedure.

To set permissions to server folders on the server

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

Click STORAGE, and then click Server Folders.

In the list view, select the server folder whose properties you want to view or modify.

In the Tasks pane, click View folder properties.

In Properties, click Sharing, and select the appropriate user access level for the listed user accounts, and then click Apply.

By default, when you add a user account to your network, a subfolder is created for the user under the Users folder on the server. The subfolder can be accessed from a network computer by only the user or the administrator. The permissions are set for each subfolder under Users, so there are no general access permissions for the top-level Users folder.

You cannot modify the sharing permissions for the File History Backups, Folder Redirection, and Users server folders. Hence, the folder properties of these server folders do not include a Sharing tab.

View or modify server folder properties

You can modify the server folder name, its description, and define which user accounts have access to a server folder through the View the folder properties task on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard.

In Windows Server Essentials and Windows Server 2012 R2 with the Windows Server Essentials Experience role installed, you can also modify folder quota.

To view or modify folder properties

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

Click STORAGE, and then click Server Folders.

In the list view, select the server folder whose properties you want to view or modify.

In the Tasks pane, click View folder properties.

In Properties, on the General tab, view or modify the name and description of the server folder.

In Windows Server Essentials and Windows Server 2012 R2 with the Windows Server Essentials Experience role installed, you can also modify folder quota that gives a warning message when a server folder reaches its specified size.

Add or move a server folder

You can add more server folders to store your files on the server in addition to the default server folders that are created during setup. You can add server folders on either the primary server or a member server running Windows Server Essentials.

You can move a server folder that is located on the primary server running Windows Server Essentials and is displayed on the Server Folders tab of the Dashboard to another hard drive when needed by using the Move a Folder Wizard. You can move a server folder to another hard drive location address if:

The data hard drive no longer has enough space to store data.

You want to change the default storage location. For a faster move, consider moving the server folder while it does not include any data.

You want to remove the existing hard drive without losing the server folders that are located on it.

Before moving the folder, ensure the following:

Ensure that you have backed up your server.

Ensure that all client backups are stopped and not in progress if you plan on moving the Client Computer Backup folder. While moving the Client Computer Backup folder, the server will be unable to back up any client computers until the folder move is completed.

Ensure that the server is not performing any critical system operations. It is recommended that you complete any updates or backups that are in progress before you start a folder move or the process may take longer to complete.

None of the files in the folder to be moved are in use. You will be unable to access the server folder while it is being moved.

Moving a folder from NTFS to ReFS is not supported if the files in the server folders implement the following technologies:

«All Users»,»Все пользователи», ProgramData — размер

«All Users» и «Все пользователи» в папке «Users» в TC отображаются как ярлыки на ProgramData, но как я вычитал на форуме — «это не ярлыки а точки монтирования и символические ссылки».

(честно говоря не до конца понял, прочитав в википедии, что это такое)

Папка ProgramData и эти «ЯРЛЫКИ» имеют равный объем, который почему то суммируется(такое ощущение что просто папка ProgramData еще 2 раза дублируется.

Сразу могу сказать дело не в TotalCommander-е. Пересчитал весь объем диска «C:» через проводник(полное совпадение с TC)

у меня папка ProgramData = почти 3 Гб в сумме с 2 «ярлыками» получается 9Гб что является непозволительной роскошью при диске «C:»- SSD объемом всего 120Гб

Собственно вопрос почему они занимают место на диске и можно ли как ни будь это исправить( OS Win7Pro x64)

Ответы (2) 

Папки с символическими ссылками дублирует реальный объем, то есть это как бы виртуально продублированный объем реальной папки, но на самом деле реальный объем остается только самой реальной папки. Так, что беспокоится не о чем. Принцип символической ссылки, то что она как бы считается за реальную, хотя это не так.

Стоит заметить, что к примеру имеется некая реальная папка ProgramData, которая имеет объем 1 Гб, если создать символическую ссылку на данную папку, то при подсчете объем реальной папки ProgramData с символической папкой увеличится в двое, если создать еще одну символическую ссылку на данную папку, то объем увеличится в трое, и т.д., но при этом на самом деле реальный объем будет оставаться 1 Гб.

1 пользователь нашел этот ответ полезным

Был ли этот ответ полезным?

К сожалению, это не помогло.

Отлично! Благодарим за отзыв.

Насколько Вы удовлетворены этим ответом?

Благодарим за отзыв, он поможет улучшить наш сайт.

Manage User Accounts in Windows Server Essentials

Applies To: Windows Server 2016 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 Essentials

The Users page of the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard centralizes information and tasks that help you manage the user accounts on your small business network. For an overview of the Users Dashboard, see Dashboard Overview.

Managing user accounts

The following topics provide information about how to use the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard to manage the user accounts on the server:

Add a user account

When you add a user account, the assigned user can log on to the network, and you can give the user permission to access network resources such as shared folders and the Remote Web Access site. Windows Server Essentials includes the Add a User Account Wizard that helps you:

Provide a name and password for the user account.

Define the account as either an administrator or as a standard user.

Select which shared folders the user account can access.

Specify if the user account has remote access to the network.

Select email options if applicable.

Assign a Microsoft Online Services account (referred to as a Microsoft 365 account in Windows Server Essentials) if applicable.

Assign user groups ( Windows Server Essentials only).

• Non-ASCII characters are not supported in Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD). Do not use any non-ASCII characters in your password, if your server is integrated with Azure AD.
  • The email options are only available if you install an add-in that provides email service.

To add a user account

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the navigation bar, click Users.

In the Users Tasks pane, click Add a user account. The Add a User Account Wizard appears.

Follow the instructions to complete the wizard.

Remove a user account

When you choose to remove a user account from the server, a wizard deletes the selected account. Because of this, you can no longer use the account to log on to the network or to access any of the network resources. As an option, you can also delete the files for the user account at the same time that you remove the account. If you do not want to permanently remove the user account, you can deactivate the user account instead to suspend access to network resources.

If a user account has a Microsoft online account assigned, when you remove the user account, the online account also is removed from Microsoft Online Services, and the user’s data, including email, is subject to data retention policies in Microsoft Online Services. If you want to retain user data for the online account, deactivate the user account instead of removing it. For more information, see Manage Online Accounts for Users.

To remove a user account

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the navigation bar, click Users.

In the list of user accounts, select the user account that you want to remove.

In the Tasks pane, click Remove the user account. The Delete a User Account Wizard appears.

On the Do you want to keep the files? page of the wizard, you can choose to delete the user’s files, including File History backups and the redirected folder for the user account. To keep the user’s files, leave the check box empty. After making your selection, click Next.

Click Delete account.

After you remove a user account, the account no longer appears in the list of user accounts. If you chose to delete the files, the server permanently deletes the user’s folder from the Users server folder and from the File History Backups server folder.

If you have an integrated email provider, the email account assigned to the user account will also be removed.

View user accounts

The Users section of the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard displays a list of network user accounts. The list also provides additional information about each account.

To view a list of user accounts

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the main navigation bar, click Users.

The Dashboard displays a current list of user accounts.

To view or change properties for a user account

In the list of user accounts, select the account for which you want to view or change properties.

In the Tasks pane, click View the account properties. The Properties page for the user account appears.

Click a tab to display the properties for that account feature.

To save any changes that you make to the user account properties, click Apply.

Change the display name for the user account

The display name is the name that appears in the Name column on the Users page of the Dashboard. Changing the display name does not change the logon or sign-in name for a user account.

To change the display name for a user account

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the navigation bar, click Users.

In the list of user accounts, select the user account that you want to change.

In the Tasks pane, click View the account properties. The Properties page for the user account appears.

On the General tab, type a new First name and Last name for the user account, and then click OK.

The new display name appears in the list of user accounts.

Activate a user account

When you activate a user account, the assigned user can log on to the network and access network resources to which the account has permission, such as shared folders and the Remote Web Access site.

You can only activate a user account that is deactivated. You cannot activate a user account after you remove it from the server.

To activate a user account

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the navigation bar, click Users.

In the list view, select the user account that you want to activate.

In the Tasks pane, click Activate the user account.

In the confirmation window, click Yes to confirm your action.

After you activate a user account, the status for the account displays Active. The user account regains the same access rights that were assigned prior to account deactivation.

If you have an integrated email provider, the email account assigned to the user account will also be activated.

Deactivate a user account

When you deactivate a user account, account access to the server is temporarily suspended. Because of this, the assigned user cannot use the account to access network resources such as shared folders or the Remote Web Access site until you activate the account.

If the user account has a Microsoft online account assigned, the online account is also deactivated. The user cannot use resources in Microsoft 365 and other online services that you subscribe to, but the user’s data, including email, is retained in Microsoft Online Services.

You can only deactivate a user account that is currently active.

To deactivate a user account

Open the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard.

On the navigation bar, click Users.

In the list view, select the user account that you want to deactivate.

In the Tasks pane, click Deactivate the user account.

In the confirmation window, click Yes to confirm your action.

After you deactivate a user account, the status for the account displays Inactive.

If you have an integrated email provider, the email account assigned to the user account will also be deactivated.

Understand user accounts

A user account provides important information to Windows Server Essentials, which enables individuals to access information that is stored on the server, and makes it possible for individual users to create and manage their files and settings. Users can log on to any computer on the network if they have a Windows Server Essentials user account and they have permissions to access a computer. Users access their user accounts with their user name and password.

There are two main types of user accounts. Each type gives users a different level of control over the computer:

Standard accounts are for everyday computing. The standard account helps protect your network by preventing users from making changes that affect other users, such as deleting files or changing network settings.

Administrator accounts provide the most control over a computer network. You should assign the administrator account type only when necessary.

Manage user accounts using the Dashboard

Windows Server Essentials makes it possible to perform common administrative tasks by using the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard. By default, the Users page of the Dashboard includes two tabs: Users and Users Groups.

• If you integrate your server that is running Windows Server Essentials with Microsoft 365, a new tab called Distribution Groups is also added within the Users page of the Dashboard.
  • In Windows Server Essentials, the Users page of the Dashboard includes only a single tab — Users.

The Users tab includes the following:

A list of user accounts, which displays:

The name of the user.

The Logon name for the user account.

Whether the user account has Anywhere Access permission. Anywhere Access permission for a user account is either Allowed or Not allowed.

Whether the File History for this user account is managed by the server running Windows Server Essentials. The File History status for a user account is either Managed or Not managed.

The level of access that is assigned to the user account. You can assign either Standard user access or Administrator access for a user account.

The user account status. A user account can be Active, Inactive, or Incomplete.

In Windows Server Essentials, if the server is integrated with Microsoft 365 or Windows Intune, the Microsoft online account is displayed.

In Windows Server Essentials, if the server is integrated with Microsoft 365, the status of the account (known in Windows Server Essentials as the Microsoft online account) for the user account is displayed.

A details pane with additional information about a selected user account.

A tasks pane that includes:

A set of user account administrative tasks such as viewing and removing user accounts, and changing passwords.

Tasks that allow you to globally set or change settings for all user accounts in the network.

The following table describes the various user account tasks that are available from the Users tab. Some of the tasks are user account-specific, and they are only visible when you select a user account in the list.

If you integrate Microsoft 365 with Windows Server Essentials, additional tasks will become available. For more information, see Manage Online Accounts for Users.

User account tasks in the Dashboard

Task name	Description
View the account properties	Enables you to view and change the properties of the selected user account, and to specify folder access permissions for the account.
Deactivate the user account	A user account that is deactivated cannot log on to the network or access network resources such as shared folders or printers.
Activate the user account	A user account that is activated can log on to the network and can access network resources as defined by the account permissions.
Remove the user account	Enables you to remove the selected user account.
Change the user account password	Enables you to reset the network password for the selected user account.
Add a user account	Starts the Add a User Account Wizard, which enables you to create a single new user account that has either standard user access or administrator access.
Assign a Microsoft online account	Adds a Microsoft online account to the local network user account that is selected.

This task is displayed when your server is integrated with Microsoft online services, such as Microsoft 365. Add Microsoft online accounts Adds Microsoft online accounts and associates them to local network user accounts.

This task is displayed when your server is integrated with Microsoft online services, such as Microsoft 365. Set the password policy Enables you to change the values of the password polices for your network. Import Microsoft online accounts Performs a bulk import of accounts from Microsoft online services into the local network.

This task is displayed when your server is integrated with Microsoft online services, such as Microsoft 365. Refresh Refreshes the Users tab.

This task is applicable to Windows Server Essentials. Change File History settings Enables you to change File History settings, such as backup frequency, or backup duration.

This task is applicable to Windows Server Essentials. Export all remote connections Creates a .CSV-format file of all remote connections to the server that have occurred over the past 30 days.

Managing passwords and access

The following topics provide information about how to use the Windows Server Essentials Dashboard to manage user account passwords and user access to the shared folders on the server: