No right to open file once copied on the desktop

file-sharingleopardpermission

I'm new to Mac, so I may not have the correct vocabulary.

  • We have a Mac 10.5.x configured to share files with AFP and SMB.
  • We have 4 other Mac as clients, various versions between 10.5 and 10.6.
  • Each of them access the server with the correct user+password.
  • The share is now configured to ignore permissions, but the problem was identical before that.
  • We can create/open/modify/delete/rename/etc files on the server, from every clients.

The problem :
When we copy a file from the server to the desktop of a client, the copied file can not be opened. The error message says the permissions don't allow the file to be read.
This is for every file from the server, on all 4 clients.
The files are copied with the finder, from the client.

Edit:
I checked the permissions.
On the server's share, when I look at the permissions from a client computer, every files are -------rw- cedric cedric (read-write for everyone) with the user and group identical to the people connected (here cedric, but this is another user when viewed from another computer).
Once the file is copied on the desktop, the permissions and owner are the same. So it is not possible to open the file because the permissions are not correct (I just tested on Linux, when a file is RW for everyone only, the owner can't open it).

So, is there a way to automatically copy the files with better permissions ? Or the share the files correctly ?

Edit:
Every client computer is now upgraded to 10.6.x for the oldest, and 10.7.x for the two others. The problem is exactly the same.
I also noted one computer can't save files from Adobe softwares to the server. The user saves the files on his desktop, then use the finder to move them to the server.

Best Answer

It sounds like you are using a non-server Mac to act as a server. Is this correct? If so I highly advise you to upgrade to some version of OS X Server.

If I am correct, your issue is caused by using standard Mac (or POSIX) permissions to handle your file share. This is the only option you have for a standard Mac when sharing files. This causes permissions issues, whether you are using AFP or SMB protocols (though SMB is worse in this respect).

If you can upgrade to OS X Server, you will want to first clean up permissions on the folder you wish to share (thus fixing any existing issues). Then create users & groups to model your organization structure. From there you will create a new file share using the Server app. Don't change any of the default permissions it gives. Instead click the "+" button to add a new Access Control Entry. This is a special type of permission that OS X Server can grant, and it resolves all of the permissions issues a standard Mac will give you in such a setup.

Peachpit Press offers a great write-up of all of this in their OS X Server manuals as well, though I couldn't find anything to link to directly. I hope this helps.

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