When I am putting files into shared folders, lets say photos for example, I just drag them from the folder on my laptop and copy them into the shared folder right? Now if there are changes to these files I have to re copy them into the folder right? Say I have a folder called 2007.12._PHOTOS and I copy that folder to the shared folder, well as december goes on there will be more photos in that folder, do they automatically get copied there after I do a back up, or as I add pictures to the folder I have to copy them to the shared folder as well. I guess I'm a little confused about the whole shared folders thing. Thanks!

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~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

The automatic backup will copy the files to your backup info, but not to the Photos share.

If you want to keep the two in synch, I would suggest some sort of synch software (or script if you are really keen).

______Begin Geeky Script Solution______________

Personally, I use a script.

Robocopy.exe c:\photos \\mediaserver\photos /mir

That one command line synchronizes a folder on my computer called photos to the Photos share on the server...

And if you have some junk files (ahem, hidden junk files from iPhoto), you can put in a filter that will only copy certain file types. Such as:

Robocopy.exe c:\photos \\mediaserver\photos *.jpg /mir

That copies only jpegs. I save this little command line in a text file named copyphotos.bat. Then I set a task on my PC to run this every few hours. Done.

If you go this route, you will need robocopy.exe (free download from MS).

______End Geeky Script Solution______________

OR you could use some software from MS that automatically synchs folders. Even has a nice front end and is free. :p

Thank you! I'm not that keen, I wouldn't even know where to type that script in. I'm such a tutorial girl, I need step by step, or something easy that does it for me! What's the name of the software fro MS that synchs it for me? Thanks necro!

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~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

No problem

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/usin ... nctoy.mspx

The only thing is that you can't set it automatically synch the folders. You have to manually do it. You can run a command line that will do it automatically but that will put you right back to the steps I mentioned above. :/

I'm sure there are some other tools that can watch the folder and automatically copy updates.

necro is correct, there is no 'auto synch' from within Synctoy; however, the steps to set-up scheduled synchronisation are fairly straight-forward. Here's the instructions for Windows XP from the help files included in Synctoy (Help > Learn how to schedule Synctoy...)

Windows XP (Windows Vista has slightly different instructions)
To schedule a task using the operating system:
1. From the Start menu, select All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - Scheduled Tasks.
2. Select Add scheduled task to start the Scheduled Task Wizard. You will see a list of possible programs to run.
3. SyncToy may appear as an option in the list. If SyncToy does not appear in the list, click Browse and go find it.
4. The wizard will next prompt you to enter how often you want to run the scheduled SyncToy (for example, daily, weekly, et cetera). Select a frequency.
5. The next page asks when to start the task. Select a start time.
6. The next page asks for the user name and password to run the program under. Enter your user name and password.
7. The final page contains an option to open the properties dialog when the wizard ends. Select this checkbox.
8. Modify the Run textbox to include the –R command line option. –R all by itself will run all folder pairs that are active for run all. If you want to run just a single folder pair, add –R“My Pair” to the end of the command line.
>> Note: there is a space before the hyphen but not one after the R. If the folder pair name contains a space, surround it with quotation marks, as the example above shows. For another example, assume that SyncToy is in the folder named C:\My Folder and that you want to run a folder pair named "My folder pair." Enter the command line as follows, including the quotation marks: "C:\My Folder\SyncToy.exe" -R"My folder pair." Note that there are two sets of quotation marks in this case: one is around the path to the SyncToy program file and the other surrounds the folder pair name.

Step #8 is obviously the trickiest, but if you take your time and follow the instructions it's not too hard. Give it a go..... you just might surprise yourself

I'm using SyncToy to do exactly this, but also for Music and My Documents as well as my wifes. Works like a charm. They are also doing an Add-In for WHS as well, which should make things easier to control and will drop the need for the scheduled task.

Thanks!
What type of files would you put in the user shared folder or the public shared folder? Documents and such?

_________________
~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

I put anything that I might want to access remotely, so at the moment, the whole of My Documents (except pictures and videos).

I dont use the public share folders, as my wife has access to mine and vice versa, it's probabky of use if you have your guest account enabled though.

I've also gone one step forward on the Photos and put the PhotoSync add-in to upload the photos automatically onto Flickr. So if either me or my wife put photos on our pc's, the MSS receives them via SyncToy and then PhotoSync uploads them. As much as I like HomeServer, its not fireproof and this way I have off site backups sorted.

Can you access your documents and such via the resotore back up remotely, or do they have to be in some sort of shared folder to access them? What about itunes, does that work remotely?

_________________
~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

No, you cannot access iTunes or Backups remotely.

You can access any files stored in the shares remotely via https://<yourservername>/Remote

For remote streaming, look at LobsterTunes or Orb.

https://<yourservername>/Remote, that actually worked for me. Remote access has not worked for me. Is that only going to work while I'm on my own network? Or can I use that when I'm at work? The domain name I registered with TZO for remote access and photo webshare doesn't work for me. (Router issues).

_________________
~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

That works inside the home, the TZO name should work outside the home once you get your router issues straightened out.

Awesome! At least I can see what I will be able to soon, hopefully, access remotely!

_________________
~MSS EX470~
~HP Pavilion dv9910us Vista Home Premium~
~HP Pavilion zv6007us XP~

If anyone has trouble with their MediaSmart server not working remotely due to port issues, router issues, etc, please feel free to PM me (that's Private message for those of you that are wondering)

I've done extensive work and testing with the MediaSmart server and port forwarding, port changes, configuration, etc

I'll try my best to point you in the right direction and make sure you are properly testing and troubleshooting before you give up!

-Eric

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http://www.tzo.com
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