UGREEN NAS File Sharing: SMB, NFS & Shared Folders

Use SMB for Windows, macOS, iPhone, iPad, and mixed-device environments. Use NFS when a Linux or Unix client, hypervisor, or specialized application specifically requires it. Whichever protocol you select, folder type and permissions determine which files each person can access.

A UGREEN NAS connects to your router or network switch through Ethernet. Computers and phones connected over Wi-Fi still reach the NAS through the router, so you do not need to connect the NAS directly to every device.

This guide focuses on using UGREEN NAS as network storage. For a broader introduction to the hardware and its purpose, read What Is NAS?.

How UGREEN NAS Makes Files Available on Your Network

When a computer opens a folder on your NAS, the request follows a defined path:

1. Your UGREEN NAS connects to the router or switch through Ethernet.
2. The router assigns the NAS an address on the local network.
3. A computer, phone, or application requests access through SMB or NFS.
4. UGOS Pro applies the account, client, and folder permissions you configured.
5. The authorized shared or personal folder appears on the client.

In this role, the NAS acts as a file server. It owns the storage pool and file system, while client devices request files through a network protocol.

Opening a network folder gives the client live access to data stored on the NAS. If you edit or delete a file inside that folder, you are changing the copy on the NAS. Mapping the folder does not create a second copy on the computer.

Once the network connection is working, the next decision is which protocol the client should use.

SMB or NFS: Which Protocol Should You Use?

SMB and NFS both provide network file access, but they fit different clients and applications.

SMB Is the Default for Most Users

SMB is the practical starting point for homes, small offices, and mixed-device networks. Windows supports it natively, and Apple states that SMB 3 is the default method macOS uses to connect to a server.

Apple’s Files app also lets an iPhone or iPad connect to a computer or file server. After connecting, authorized NAS folders appear alongside other locations in the Files app.

Use a named UGREEN NAS account instead of guest access whenever possible. Named accounts make it easier to control permissions, change access later, and identify which user performed an action.

UGOS Pro supports current SMB versions. Keep SMB 1 disabled. Microsoft identifies significant security vulnerabilities in SMB 1 and strongly recommends against using it. If an old device only supports SMB 1, updating or replacing that client is safer than weakening file sharing for the rest of the network.

Time Machine also uses SMB, but it needs a designated backup folder rather than an ordinary general-purpose share. In UGOS Pro, enable Bonjour, assign a shared folder as the Time Machine destination, and set a capacity quota so one Mac cannot consume all available storage. Follow our full guide to backing up a Mac to UGREEN NAS with Time Machine.

How to Connect to a UGREEN NAS Shared Folder

Before connecting, enable the required file service in UGOS Pro and confirm that your account or client has permission to access the destination folder.

Connect From Windows

Open File Explorer and enter either of these paths in the address bar:

• \\NAS-name\shared-folder
• \\NAS-IP\shared-folder

For example:

\\192.168.1.50\FamilyPhotos

Sign in with your UGREEN NAS username and password. If you use the folder regularly, right-click This PC, select Map network drive, and assign the share a drive letter.

Connect From macOS

In Finder, select Go > Connect to Server and enter:

• smb://NAS-name/shared-folder
• smb://NAS-IP/shared-folder

For example:

smb://192.168.1.50/FamilyPhotos

Select Connect, enter your NAS account credentials, and choose the folder you want to mount. The share then appears in Finder under Locations.

Connect From an iPhone or iPad

Open the Files app and select Browse > More > Connect to Server. Enter the NAS hostname or local IP address, choose Registered User, and sign in with your NAS account.

The available shared folders then appear under Shared in the Files app. Access remains subject to the permissions assigned to that account.

Connect Through NFS

Enable NFS under Control Panel > File Services > NFS, then add an NFS permission rule to the shared folder. The rule must authorize the client address and use the appropriate Squash setting.

Mount the exported folder using the NFS client provided by the operating system or application. Windows users should remain with SMB unless their workflow specifically requires NFS because the Windows Client for NFS is not available or enabled in every Windows edition.

Connecting successfully only proves that the client can reach the NAS. Folder type and permissions still determine what appears after login.

Shared Folders and Personal Folders Solve Different Problems

UGOS Pro provides shared folders for collaborative storage and personal folders for individual accounts.

A personal folder gives one account its own storage area. Other standard users should not use that folder as a common workspace.

A shared folder is designed for files that several accounts need to reach. Creating one does not give every NAS user full access. You still decide who can read, modify, or access the folder at all.

That structure is easier to maintain when permissions are planned before users begin mapping folders.

Set Permissions Before You Map the Folder

Giving everyone the same administrator login is the fastest way to lose control of a shared NAS. Each person should have an individual account, and the administrator account should be reserved for system management.

Use this order when planning access:

1. Create an account for each person. Individual accounts let you change one user’s access without affecting everyone else.
2. Create groups for repeated roles. A team such as Editors, Finance, or Family Viewers can receive one consistent permission set.
3. Assign the least access required. Give read and write access to people who must change files. Use read-only access when users only need to view or download them.
4. Block access to unrelated folders. A user does not need visibility into every shared folder on the NAS.
5. Test with a standard account. Confirm that the user can open the required folder and cannot reach restricted content.

Read-only access is especially useful for finished media libraries, templates, reference documents, and archives. It reduces accidental changes while keeping the files available.

Permissions also need to match the selected protocol. SMB normally authenticates with a NAS account. NFS uses separate client and identity rules, so an SMB permission test does not prove that an NFS client has the same effective access.

SMB and NFS Are Different From the NAS File System

SMB and NFS carry file requests across the network. The storage pool’s file system organizes data on the NAS drives.

These layers perform different jobs:

• The file system records folders, files, metadata, and storage allocation on the NAS.
• SMB or NFS presents an authorized folder to another device over the network.
• RAID determines how data and redundancy are distributed across drives in the storage pool.

A Windows computer does not need native support for the NAS file system to open an SMB share. Windows sends an SMB request, and the NAS reads the requested data from its own file system.

Changing from SMB to NFS does not convert the storage pool, change its RAID level, or create another copy of the data. It only changes how the client communicates with the NAS.

The same distinction matters when moving beyond local access. Remote access, synchronization, and backup are separate storage operations.

Local File Sharing, Remote Access, and Sync Are Different

SMB and NFS are primarily local-network file services. Keep them behind your router or firewall and do not forward SMB port 445 or NFS services directly to the public internet.

For access away from home or the office, use UGREENlink and follow the account and network protections covered in our UGREEN NAS security guide. If a specific application requires WebDAV, use the supported configuration described in our UGREEN NAS WebDAV guide.

Synchronization serves another purpose. A mapped SMB or NFS folder leaves the file on the NAS and gives the client live access. A sync task copies files between the NAS and another device or destination according to the task’s direction and deletion rules. Our UGREEN NAS file-sync guide covers that workflow separately.

Backup adds recovery requirements. A reliable backup retains a separate copy that can survive deletion, ransomware, hardware loss, or storage-pool failure. RAID can keep data available after certain drive failures, but it does not recover files deleted or encrypted across the active storage pool.

After choosing the right access method, the final practical question is whether the network and storage pool can deliver the speed your users need.

What Speed Should You Expect From Network Storage?

The network link creates a hard upper limit, while the drives, RAID configuration, client, switch, cabling, file size, and workload determine how close a transfer gets to that limit.

A fast NAS port cannot compensate for a slower connection elsewhere. A 10GbE NAS connected through a 1GbE switch or to a 1GbE computer will transfer at approximately 1GbE speed.

The storage pool must also keep up with the network. A four-drive HDD array may not reach 1.0 GB/s. SSD pools, larger arrays, or several simultaneous clients are more likely to make meaningful use of a 10GbE connection.

File size changes the outcome as well. One 50GB video file usually transfers much faster than a folder containing thousands of small files with the same total size because every file adds protocol, metadata, and file-system work.

If performance is lower than the network and storage configuration should deliver, work through our fixes for slow NAS transfers. If network-port speed is part of your purchase decision, you can also browse and filter UGREEN NAS models.

Conclusion

For most homes and small offices, the cleanest setup is SMB with separate user accounts, shared folders for collaborative files, and personal folders for private storage.

Use NFS when a Linux, Unix, hypervisor, or specialized application explicitly requires it. Keep both protocols on the local network, assign only the permissions each user needs, and use UGREENlink or another supported remote-access method when connecting from outside that network.