Easy remote access to your Windows Home Server via SkyDrive
I hate to admit this but I found out this little tip completely by accident. I was out of state recently and wanted to share a file via SkyDrive so I loaded up the SkyDrive webapp. https://skydrive.live.com/ Easy enough. Upload a file, share it, done. What I found by accident is that I could access every folder on my Windows Home Server 2011 that was miles away!
To get you up to speed, I have a Windows Home Server 2011 edition and I have the SkyDrive app installed on it. You can find these apps here. https://apps.live.com/skydrive
Install the app and check the settings for it.
There is a setting that allows remote devices to view the files on the PC you have SkyDrive installed on. It’s called Fetch Files.
Check the Fetch Files box and your Windows Home Server shares and folders will now be available to you from anywhere you can fire up a web browser.
I am assuming this is not checked by default. Leave me a comment if you try this.
Login in to SkyDrive https://skydrive.live.com/ and check under the heading of Computers on the left hand side. My server name just happens to be “Homeserver,” Very original, I know!
In the screen shot above you are looking at your SkyDrive folders and files. Your not yet connected to your server.
When you click the computer name under the Computers heading you will be presented with a security check.
This security check will e-mail you a PIN number to the email address you have registered with your Live account.
I have removed my e-mail address but you will see the address that the PIN will go to right by the little mail icon.
Check your e-mail and insert the PIN code into the box and click submit. Your SkyDrive webpage will now update and show your Windows Home Server hard drives and folders. I assume you can do this with other PC’s you have the SkyDrive app loaded on as well. I don’t see the option on a Mac computer however.
View the image above to see my Windows Home Server drives and folder. Let me know what you think via comments or in the forums. http://homeservershow.com/forums I brought this up in podcast 187 and showed these screens on video. You can view that video on YouTube. http://youtube.com/homeservershow
UPDATE: There is a forum thread for this article here. Forums member gcoupe has some excellent information on the topic.
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Category: Windows Home Server, Windows Home Server 2011
Just tried it. Worked like a charm.
[...] Easy remote access to your Windows Home Server via SkyDrive [...]
This also seems to give access (at least in firefox browser) to any file on any of my computers with the client app installed and PC running, even network mapped drives on my PC at work??
The new SkyDrive client install enables this setting by default, so you've probably just set it like this on all of the PCs you have running the client, even if you weren't aware of it, making all of the files on all of them available.
[...] More details can be found here. [...]