So, my server finally died (good old 10 year old machine, minimum). I was running Mandriva on it using samba to share some data areas for backups and storage (had added a SATA card and some 1TB drives). With it's death I decided to switch to Ubuntu..
I am running Ubuntu 12.10. I initially installed samba since that is what I was used to, but then noticed when in Nautilus that, like in windows, I can right click and share.
What is the difference between these sharing modes? I can see my samba share but still have permissions to fix since I setup one of the old drives and it doesn't have the right group ownership yet. But I "right clicked shared" another area and I can see that and use it right away from my windows boxes…
Do I not even need to use samba any more? Should I ditch it for this other sharing method?
I did some searches but didn't find much, most likely I just don't know the key words yet to use in my search..
Unix: medium user; Ubuntu: NEWBIE!!
Best Answer
Ubuntu requires the Samba server to be able to share files using network protocol called Server Message Block (SMB) that's where the name "Samba" came from. Thus, any Ubuntu apps that runs on top of Ubuntu including Nautilus requires the Samba server daemon installed to serve files over the network.
Additional info at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Samba
Hope this helps.
Eduardo B.