Simple Simon Samba HOW TO

Jerry Winegarden

Last Revised: 10/19/00

Samba - what it is

There are other packages that provide the client part, the most common is called "Gnomba". Gnomba allows you to access files from machines running Microsoft Windows 95/98 through Network Neighborhood as if you were running Win 98. For information on how to obtain/install gnomba, please see: Obtaining and Installing Gnomba HOW TO.

To access files or printers from your samba server, PC's must have installed "Client for Microsoft Networks", which is the case if "Network Neighborhood" icon shows up on your desktop. To install "Client for Microsoft Networks", please see: File Sharing with Microsoft Windows HOW TO.

Obtaining Samba

Installing Samba

Samba configuration files are now in /etc/samba. In particular, the main samba configuration file is: /etc/samba/smb.conf. To start up samba for a simple trial, there are only a few changes to make. How much work you have to do after that depends on what how many directories you want to share and how you want to share them.

Quick samba configuration (for simple operations and quick testing)

Change the following lines in /etc/samba/smb.conf:

1. workgroup = Your_workgroup_name
   (e.g. workgroup = YORK if you are in a dorm named York and you want to show up with other machines in the workgroup you all call "YORK".)

2. hosts allow = a.b. a.c.
   where a,b are the first two numbers of your machine's IP number, and a,c may be the first two numbers of other machines at Duke from which you may want to allow access. Notice the trailing "."; this is important. "a.b." means "a.b.*.*", so any machine with IP number which started with a.b will be allowed. Notice also the space with no comma separating the two entries "a.b." and "a.c."; this is how you specify more than one range of IP numbers.

   Note: this line is commented out. If you uncomment it and change the IP numbers to those above, you will allow ALL machines with IP numbers in the specified range to POSSIBLY have access to files on your server. For a quick test of whether you have samba running, you do NOT need to uncomment or change this line. If your server is not behind your own firewall, then using this line is a good idea.

3. encrypt passwords = yes
   Note: if access is only from Win 98 (or the most recent version of Win95) or from WinNT/2000 clients, then you should ENCRYPT = yes. If you have only older Win 95 clients, you should leave this line COMMENTED OUT (; encrypt password = yes) (or change it to = no). If you have a mixture of Win 98 and old Win 95 boxes, then you will have to decide which ones to serve, or to NOT ENCRYPT, and change the Win 98 boxes to stop encrypting passwords. If you are NOT behind your a firewall, this is not necessarily a good idea to not encrypt passwords. (Duke University and the dorm network are not behind a firewall. ) Instructions on how to disable password encryption on a MS Windows 98 box are available from: MS Windows Password Encryption

4. unix password sync = Yes
   This will allow your samba users password file (/etc/samba/smbpasswd) and your unix users password file (/etc/passwd) to remain synchronized (i.e. changing samba password will cause the unix password to be changed).

The resulting samba configuration will then allow:

• "User-level" access
• all printers listed in /etc/printcap will be shared
• your group name for Network Neighborhood will be what you set in the "workgroup =" line
• your machine name in Network Neighborhood will be your TCP/IP host name
  (for example: w-x-y-z.dorm.duke.edu, whatever the value /bin/hostname shows).
• Access to all files in Linux home directory /home/someusername IF:
  • Linux user account created
    
    • Use "useradd" and "passwd" commands to create /home/someusername directory, someusername entry in /etc/passwd file, and password set for someusername.
    • For instructions in creating user accounts, please see:
      • Adding and Deleting Users under Red Hat Linux
      • Now What? (Steps to take immediately after Red Hat Linux Installation)
        or see:
      • Linux System Management - Part I.
  • user is logged into an MS Windows 98 machine with exactly that same username (here shown as"someusername") and password.

Starting up samba services

==>/sbin/linuxconf ==>Control ==>Control service activity

(from the embedded window on right, scroll down to find choice of
service to control)

==>smb   (smbd is not listed, nor is nmbd.  choosing smb will configure both
		smbd and nmbd to start up automatically)

(from the "Basic info" section, buttons for "Automatic", "Start" "Stop"
	and "Accept" as well as "Restart")

To make smbd (and nmbd) start up automatically, click on the
"Automatic" button so that it appears to be "pressed in".
(Clicking on it again makes the button appear to be "pressed out".)

==>Automatic (click to press it "IN")

==>Start  (to start smbd and nmbd NOW)

==>Accept (this accepts the changes you just specified, namely,
		make smbd start automatically and to start it now.)
==>Quit  (for samba configuration, you are done now).
==>Quit
==>Quit  (this finally quits linuxconf)