File Sharing¶

Eight.ly OS includes native SMB and NFS file sharing managed from the dashboard. No containerized Samba, no editing /etc/exports by hand.

Where to find it: Sidebar > File Sharing

Overview¶

Eight.ly manages the host's Samba (smbd) and kernel NFS (nfs-kernel-server) for you. You create shares in the dashboard — Eight.ly writes /etc/samba/smb.conf and the NFS exports, then reloads the services. No container restart, no editing config files by hand, no config reload you have to trigger yourself.

This pairs naturally with the storage pool — share your MergerFS or ZFS mount points over the network so other machines can access them.

Creating a Share¶

File Sharing has one Create Share form that covers both protocols — pick the type first and the fields adjust.

1. Go to File Sharing in the sidebar and open Create Share
2. Share Type — SMB/CIFS (Windows & macOS) or NFS (Linux & Unix)
3. Share Name — what clients see when browsing. You can also set an optional, more readable Display Name.
4. Share Path — the directory to share (use the Browse button to pick it, or type it in, e.g. /mnt/<array>/media)
5. For NFS: Allowed Clients — the address, network, or hostname that may connect (e.g. 192.168.1.0/24). Leave blank to allow any computer.
6. Access Control — Read Only, Read/Write, or Custom Permissions
7. For SMB: pick Allowed Users from your Eight.ly users, and set Advanced Options — Enable guest access, Enable share browsing, Enable recycling bin, and Use as a Time Machine backup destination
8. Click Create Share

The share is live immediately.

Per-Share Permissions¶

Click on any share to edit its access controls — allowed users, read/write vs read-only, and guest access.

Time Machine Backup Destination¶

macOS users can back up to Eight.ly over the network using Time Machine.

Eight.ly's SMB shares support Apple's fruit/MacSamba extensions. Turn on Use as a Time Machine backup destination in a share's Advanced Options and it appears in the macOS Time Machine picker.

1. Create (or edit) an SMB share and enable Use as a Time Machine backup destination
2. On your Mac: System Settings > General > Time Machine > Add Backup Disk > select the Eight.ly share

Connecting from Clients¶

Windows¶

Open File Explorer and type in the address bar:

\\YOUR-SERVER-IP\ShareName

Or map it as a network drive: right-click This PC > Map network drive > enter \\YOUR-SERVER-IP\ShareName.

macOS¶

In Finder: Go > Connect to Server (Cmd+K):

smb://YOUR-SERVER-IP/ShareName

Linux (SMB)¶

# Temporary mount
sudo mount -t cifs //YOUR-SERVER-IP/ShareName /mnt/share -o username=youruser

# Persistent mount (add to /etc/fstab)
//YOUR-SERVER-IP/ShareName /mnt/share cifs username=youruser,password=yourpass,uid=1000 0 0

Linux (NFS)¶

# Temporary mount
sudo mount -t nfs YOUR-SERVER-IP:/mnt/storage/media /mnt/media

# Persistent mount (add to /etc/fstab)
YOUR-SERVER-IP:/mnt/storage/media /mnt/media nfs defaults 0 0

Troubleshooting¶

Permission denied when connecting¶

• Check that the user exists in Eight.ly and has access to the share
• Verify the password is correct (SMB passwords are separate from system passwords)
• For NFS, verify your client's IP is in the allowed network range

Share not visible on the network¶

• SMB discovery (NetBIOS/mDNS) may take a minute to propagate
• Try connecting directly by IP instead of browsing
• Check that the smbd (SMB) and nfs-kernel-server (NFS) services are running from Settings > Services in the dashboard

Slow transfer speeds¶

• Check your network link speed (1 Gbps tops out around 110 MB/s)
• If using spinning drives, sequential reads max around 150-200 MB/s per drive
• Large numbers of small files are always slower than a few big files — this is a filesystem limitation, not an Eight.ly issue
• For NFS, try adding async to the export options (trades safety for speed)

Related Guides¶

• Storage Management — set up the drives and pools that back your shares
• Networking — deploy modes and network configuration
• Backup — back up share data with Eight.ly Backup Server