External HD access (over wi-fi) question

[ijha]

Hi, Everyone.
I can't seem to find the thread related to my problem so, here's my question.

I have a 1TB WD external harddrive connected to my 2011 mac mini (via USB). While my mini can see (read/write) the external HD, my other Macbooks can't see the HD over the wi-fi.

I don't know if this is normal or not. Theoretically, I am able to access to the HD over wi-fi, am I correct? If not, what do I have to do? Is the format (FAT 32) of the external HD that prevent me from accessing to it?

Any feedback is appreciated. Thank you.

[Weaselboy]

The format won't matter as long as your Mac can read/write the USB drive.

Just go to Sharing in System Prefs and turn on File Sharing then add the external drive to list of shared folders. Then on the Macbooks you should be able to see the shared drive in the Finder.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by Weaselboy

The format won't matter as long as your Mac can read/write the USB drive.

Just go to Sharing in System Prefs and turn on File Sharing then add the external drive to list of shared folders. Then on the Macbooks you should be able to see the shared drive in the Finder.

Thanks a lot Weaselboy!
I turned on File Sharing. But I didn't know that there's additional step to do. I will add the HD to the list and see if it's working.

Thanks again.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by ijha

Thanks a lot Weaselboy!
I turned on File Sharing. But I didn't know that there's additional step to do. I will add the HD to the list and see if it's working.

Thanks again.

Interesting.
I added the external HD to the list but my wirelessly connected macbook pros can't access to the HD. In fact, I can't even find the external HD remotely.

Anyone can help me?

[warvanov]

Originally Posted by ijha

Interesting.
I added the external HD to the list but my wirelessly connected macbook pros can't access to the HD. In fact, I can't even find the external HD remotely.

Anyone can help me?

You may also have to add users or a guest account to grant access to the shared folders/drives.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by warvanov

You may also have to add users or a guest account to grant access to the shared folders/drives.

I already added everyone including myself but no luck. Am I the only one who experiences this?

[Weaselboy]

Originally Posted by ijha

Interesting.
I added the external HD to the list but my wirelessly connected macbook pros can't access to the HD. In fact, I can't even find the external HD remotely.

Anyone can help me?

Try clicking on the Go menu in Finder, then Connect to Server... and look for the disk on the Mini.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by Weaselboy

Try clicking on the Go menu in Finder, then Connect to Server... and look for the disk on the Mini.

This is really frustrating. From my macbook pro I clicked the GO menu and then Connect to Server. The Mac mini does not even list my external hard drive!

How come this is possible? I am really confused. The mini shows the external hard drive on its desktop. (under the name of 'MY BOOK'). But from my remote notebooks (two macbook pros), I can't even find this device at all.

Please help me!

[lovememac]

System preferences, iCloud, tick back to mac on all devices.

Should be good to go.

Works for me.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by lovememac

System preferences, iCloud, tick back to mac on all devices.

Should be good to go.

Works for me.

I tried but no luck. Arghh...this drives me crazy.

[Mojo1]

Sometimes a WiFi network gets a bit weird; it happened to me recently...I might not have thought of this fix if someone hadn't suggested it to me.

Power-off your Macs. Disconnect your WiFi router and modem from their power sources. Unplug them; don't just turn them off if they have a power button.

Reconnect the modem; wait until all the lights are on except for the one that indicates LAN data transfers are taking place. Then reconnect the WiFi router to its power source. Then turn on your Macs.

With any luck your Macs will become accessible to each other.

[ijha]

Originally Posted by Mojo1

Sometimes a WiFi network gets a bit weird; it happened to me recently...I might not have thought of this fix if someone hadn't suggested it to me.

Power-off your Macs. Disconnect your WiFi router and modem from their power sources. Unplug them; don't just turn them off if they have a power button.

Reconnect the modem; wait until all the lights are on except for the one that indicates LAN data transfers are taking place. Then reconnect the WiFi router to its power source. Then turn on your Macs.

With any luck your Macs will become accessible to each other.

Thanks Mojo. I will try that tonight. But I am wondering what the cause is for all these problems. I will connect other USB-external devices for test. If my macbook pro can access to them, that means the external HD has a problem.

[Mojo1]

Originally Posted by ijha

Thanks Mojo. I will try that tonight. But I am wondering what the cause is for all these problems. I will connect other USB-external devices for test. If my macbook pro can access to them, that means the external HD has a problem.

I wouldn't waste much time trying to figure it out unless my suggestion doesn't fix your problem. Sometimes devices on a LAN just lose touch with each other; the situation that we experienced is rare in my experience but not a cause for concern.

I was getting ready to trouble-shoot the problem but I didn't have a clue where to start. An Other World Computing tech suggested I try the fix and it worked. The problem hasn't resurfaced and unless it happens on a regular basis I'm not going to worry about it.

[ijha]

Nothing is working. Is it time for me to take the mini to Genius Bar?