18. Sharing Files between Fedora 31 and Windows Systems with Samba

Although Linux has made some inroads into the desktop market, its origins and future are very much server-based. It is not surprising therefore that Fedora 31 has the ability to act as a file server. It is also extremely common for Fedora and Windows systems to be used side by side in networked environments. It is a common requirement, therefore, that files on a Fedora 31 system be accessible to Linux, UNIX and Windows-based systems over network connections. Similarly, shared folders and printers residing on Windows systems may also need to be accessible from Fedora 31 based systems.

Windows systems share resources such as file systems and printers using a protocol known as Server Message Block (SMB). In order for a Fedora 31 system to serve such resources over a network to a Windows system and vice versa it must, therefore, support SMB. This is achieved using technology called Samba. In addition to providing integration...