Can read but cannot write to windows servers

walnuts · Feb 7, 2008

Hey all,

I did a quick search and couldn't find a thread on this, so if this is a repeat, I am sorry, but here goes:

I have a macbook running 10.5.1 that I hook up to my windows based work network and its associated server with all of our project files. All other windows machines, labtops and desktops running win xp or win2000 can easily connect to the servers.

I pulled the IP address that my win xp desktop uses to connect to the servers and used it to connect to the servers with my mb as laid out in the guides on macrumors. I can see the servers and open or copy documents fine (i.e. it reads the server fine). I also can access the internet and the e-mail server fine.

However, each time I attempt to write to the servers (copy a document, even save a doc that I have opened), it fails. It usually starts a copy dialogue and then either gives me an error message saying that I can't edit because I don't have access, or the connection is bad... etc. It will usually place a 0 kb or 4 kb file with the correct name on the server, but no data.

Anyone else have this problem/know a solution?

Thanks in advance for the help!

Toxman · Feb 7, 2008

Same for me. Haven't found a solution yet. When you look in Explorer, windows shows that the file has zero bytes, yet there's a hidden file that is the same size as the file you're trying to copy. You can't open the hidden file.

aross99 · Feb 7, 2008

I suspect this is because the Windows Server has an NTFS file system. This is the standard for Windows Servers.

OS X can READ NTFS, but not write to it. Where may be some extra software you can buy to allow this, but it doesn't come standard with OS X.

richard.mac · Feb 7, 2008

aross99 said:
I suspect this is because the Windows Server has an NTFS file system. This is the standard for Windows Servers.

OS X can READ NTFS, but not write to it. Where may be some extra software you can buy to allow this, but it doesn't come standard with OS X.

this is true for local volumes but if you use samba (smb), which is open source and part of UNIX, you can write to windows NTFS shares over the network. smb includes code to write to NTFS so this is why you can write to shared folders on a Windows machine over a home network.

walnuts what protocol are you using to connect to the windows server?

walnuts · Feb 8, 2008

richthomas said:
walnuts what protocol are you using to connect to the windows server?

I log in using smb:[ip adress]. I presume that means I use samba.

That would be really frustrating if there was just no way to write to the servers. I would think that its ok because wouldn't OS X clearly state when either I connected or tried to write that it can't write to NTFS rather than giving cryptic and confusing messages that you don't have permission or such?

tersono · Feb 8, 2008

aross99 said:
I suspect this is because the Windows Server has an NTFS file system. This is the standard for Windows Servers.

OS X can READ NTFS, but not write to it. Where may be some extra software you can buy to allow this, but it doesn't come standard with OS X.

Doesn't apply to network volumes - the file system used is irrelevant.

yellow · Feb 8, 2008

try using:

cifs://server/share

And make sure whatever you're writing doesn't have illegal characters in the file name.

They are:

? [ ] / \ = + < > : ; " ,

Erwin-Br · Feb 8, 2008

I have no trouble writing to NTFS over the network with Samba. However, it is kinda annoying that OSX leaves 0kb files all over the place. Appearantly these (hidden) files are created for every file that you access, whether you're viewing an image, playing an MP3, or copying a file.

I wonder if it's possible to avoid this. Or at least let OSX clean up these files when you're done with whatever you're doing with a file.

--Erwin

yellow · Feb 8, 2008

THey are a holdover from the resource fork / data fork days.

tersono · Feb 8, 2008

Your problem is almost certainly authentication or permissions related.

The solution entirely depends on how the Windows server has been set up. I admin a mixed Windows/Mac network using Active Directory. We use the Windows server "services for macintosh" plug-in, which allows us to use AFP rather than SMB, but it _should_ work perfectly well either way.

If you are on an AD domain, you don't actually _have_ to have AD login set up on your mac, but you DO have to authenticate correctly against the domain when mounting shares. In addition, you must have a corresponding account set up in AD to authenticate against, and it must have the correct read-write permissions set against the directories concerned.

If you're not using an AD domain, then it's a tad easier. You just need to ensure that the directory share you're connecting to has read/write privileges allocated to the account that your using, and ensure that you are connecting using the correct user/pass and workgroup settings.

walnuts · Feb 8, 2008

yellow said:
try using:

cifs://server/share

And make sure whatever you're writing doesn't have illegal characters in the file name.

They are:

? [ ] / \ = + < > : ; " ,

I will try this next time I have my macbook with me.

tersono said:
Your problem is almost certainly authentication or permissions related.

The solution entirely depends on how the Windows server has been set up. I admin a mixed Windows/Mac network using Active Directory. We use the Windows server "services for macintosh" plug-in, which allows us to use AFP rather than SMB, but it _should_ work perfectly well either way.

If you are on an AD domain, you don't actually _have_ to have AD login set up on your mac, but you DO have to authenticate correctly against the domain when mounting shares. In addition, you must have a corresponding account set up in AD to authenticate against, and it must have the correct read-write permissions set against the directories concerned.

If you're not using an AD domain, then it's a tad easier. You just need to ensure that the directory share you're connecting to has read/write privileges allocated to the account that your using, and ensure that you are connecting using the correct user/pass and workgroup settings.

How do I tell/is there way I can tell whether I have AD or otherwise or change any of the things that you have mentioned without help from my IT guy? These things that you mention I don't know anything about and I feel as though I can't change any if them without the IT guy. He simply won't help me.

If I have an AD account, would the read-write permissions and authentication be the same whether I'm on my macbook or on the windows computer? I regularly read and write on my main windows work computer using the same login and password that I use when I connect through smb.

Thanks for all the help!

walnuts · Feb 11, 2008

yellow said:
try using:

cifs://server/share

And make sure whatever you're writing doesn't have illegal characters in the file name.

They are:

? [ ] / \ = + < > : ; " ,

Thanks- but this didn't work. I got the same symptoms that I had using smb. Perhaps 10.5.2 will help?

Edit: 10.5.2 did not solve the problem. It does handle it better though. It now immediately tells me that I do not have permission to edit and no longer leaves 0 kb files.

Tersono, I think you are right, but it looks like without my IT guy I just won't be able to fix this.

JVinCV · Feb 27, 2008

was no problem in Tiger

I don't understand.
I was reading and writing to windows shares without an issue in 10.4.
Could this really be something that broke in Leopard and we don't have a fix after 2 major updates? Or is there just a setting that needs to be different now? Anybody heard anything from Apple regarding this?

BTW, I get a very similar "you don't have enough permissions..." when trying to write to a windows share from Win XP running inside VMware Fusion v1.1.1. Login using same account from a real PC and my permissions are fine.

My VMware is using bridged networking and the virtual PC gets its own IP from the DHCP server, connects to exchange just fine, browses the domain ok, reads and copies from shares ok too. Just Can't Write!

Could Leopard be messing up Active Directory authentication inside VMware also?

Someone must have this answer right?

yellow · Feb 27, 2008

Leopard and AD work just fine together for authentication.

JVinCV · Feb 27, 2008

really?

yellow said:
Leopard and AD work just fine together for authentication.

Then why are many of us unable to write to windows shares because of a permission issue when logged into the domain using Leopard, but can write just fine from a PC using the same credentials?

Clearly there must be some problem or this thread wouldn't exist right?

JVinCV · Feb 27, 2008

Erwin-Br said:
I have no trouble writing to NTFS over the network with Samba...

What version of Mac OS X are you using please?

richard.mac · Feb 28, 2008

JVinCV said:
What version of Mac OS X are you using please?

read post #4. Macs have been able to read/write to shared NTFS drives using smb (samba) since Mac OS X was launched. smb is open source and part on Unix.

yellow · Feb 28, 2008

JVinCV said:
Then why are many of us unable to write to windows shares because of a permission issue when logged into the domain using Leopard, but can write just fine from a PC using the same credentials?

Clearly there must be some problem or this thread wouldn't exist right?

Not sure what to tell you. I have quite a few Mac users with 10.5.2 authenticating to AD (2003) just fine (with no schema changes) and using their shares with no problems.

One thing we don't do anymore is mount home shares automagically via the user's profile. Shares are mounted via script or "Connect To...".

player9 · Feb 29, 2008

I have the same problem with the unable to write to SMB volumes, but only for one Mac. The Powerbook 1.5GHz cannot write to a Windows Server 2003 share, but an Intel iMac on the same network writes just fine and has no problems. Both machines are binded to Active Directory and both are on OS X 10.5.2.

walnuts · Feb 29, 2008

player9 said:
I have the same problem with the unable to write to SMB volumes, but only for one Mac. The Powerbook 1.5GHz cannot write to a Windows Server 2003 share, but an Intel iMac on the same network writes just fine and has no problems. Both machines are binded to Active Directory and both are on OS X 10.5.2.

What do you mean that the machines are binded to Active Directory? Does that mean that there is something other than login name and password, perhaps computer specific permission given by an administrator, that allows or denies write access?

player9 · Feb 29, 2008

By Binded.... I mean you go into the Directory Utility and setup Active Directory to connect to a domain controller.

Like I said, I have two macs, one that works and one that does not, so it can't be permissions on the server. The Server is set to allow Everyone full access.

I am beginning to think it might be just the share name, so I am going to change it and see if it works.

russell · Mar 3, 2008

Same here

I'm having the same issue, read my thread at Apple support discussions here:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1425033&tstart=0

dgdosen · Mar 7, 2008

FYI - I'm having the same issues with SMB - I have the issue on three different macs trying to write to a windows share.

I'm confident that the authentication is fine - as I need to enter a correct account, and I can delete files...

I just can't add or append... Might it be the firewall?

dgdosen · Mar 7, 2008

One thing - If the files are on a PC running Vista - smb seems to work. When the files are on a Server (in my case Windows Server 2008) I can't seem toe write them.

I'm not sure if it's a problem with SMB on Windows Server 2008, or with the firewall.

yellow · Mar 7, 2008

Hmm.. I have had issues with file sharing to and from Vista and OS X.
I wonder if this could be related since Server 2008 is 'vista server'?

Can read but cannot write to windows servers

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