The Business versions of Win Vista, which let you connect your Laptop to a network running Win Server, have extremely fine-grained permissions. For example, with the right settings, you can allow one user to open files in a particular folder but not change them. Or you can prevent another user from seeing those files in that folder, but allow them to navigate through that folder to a subfolder it contains and then allow them to work with just one of the files in that subfolder. Setting such permissions is intricate & tricky - & in any case, majority home users don’t need such complex permissions. So, the Home versions of Win Vista provide a simplified set of permissions & set up sharing as follows:

• Win encourages you to create a separate user account for each person who uses your Laptop & to protect each user account with a password. Win keeps each user account’s files separately.

• Win Vista creates a folder named Users on the system drive - for example, C:Users. This folder contains each user’s user account & a separate collection of settings for each user. By contrast, Win XP stores the user accounts in the Documents & Settings folder for example, C:Documents & Settings.

• The Users folder contains a folder for each user account you’ve created, together with a Public folder, which Win Vista creates so that you can share files & folders with other users of the Laptop & the network.

• Win Vista automatically protects files & folders in each user account from Standard users & the Guest user. However, any Administrator user can access the contents of any user’s user account folders.

• Win Vista assumes that you’ll want to share some files & folders with other users of your Laptop, but not with other computers on the network. For such sharing, Win Vista provides folders that are automatically shared with all users of your Laptop the Public folder structure. You can’t stop Win from sharing these folders.

• Win Vista lets you choose whether to let other computers on the network see your Laptop & whether to share files, the Public folder, & printers from your Laptop. You can choose whether to limit the sharing of the Public folder & printers to people who have a user account on your Laptop or whether to let anyone access these items.

• Win Vista lets you share your media library - your music, pictures, & videos - with other users on the network.

• For any folder apart from folders owned & protected by the operating system, you can choose to share the folder on the network. You can even share your Documents folder but it’s not usually a good idea.

• You can share either a folder or individual files. Normally, it’s best to set up folders for sharing & then place in them the files you want to share. If you share a file & let other users modify it, they can also create new files in the folder that contains the file.

Who Are the Administrator Users?

The user who set up Win Vista on your Laptop becomes an Administrator user. That user can create other Administrator users as needed. The Laptop must always have at least one Administrator user so that there’s someone to administer it if a problem occurs.

Expert Knowledge: Manipulating Permissions with cacls& xcacls

If you find the file sharing arrangements in Home versions of Win Vista too simple, you may be glad to know that Win Vista bundles a tool that lets you manipulate permissions on individual files. It’s called cacls, it’s a command-line utility, & it’s awkward to use because you need to understand permissions in order to make it do what you want.

cacls stands for “change access control lists,” & there’s a more powerful version of cacls called xcacls “extended change access control lists” that you can Downloads for free from the Microsoft website search for “xcacls.exe”. In Win, an access control list ACL is used to store the permissions for an object, such as a file, a folder, a printer, or another resource.

Because cacls & xcacls are highly esoteric, this article leaves you to explore them on your own if you decide you need them. Use the /? switch from the command line for example, cacls /? to display the aid available.

Setting Up Sharing & Discovery

Sharing & discovery is the general public of Win settings that control how your Laptop can communicate with other computers on your network. These settings are part of Win Firewall, a software-based form of protection for your Laptop. To set up sharing & discovery, you must be an Administrator user or know an Administrator user’s password. Your Laptop should be connected to a private network rather than a public network - for example, connected to your home network where you do want to share files rather than to a public network at your local airport or coffee shop where you don’t want to share files.

Opening a Network & Sharing Center Window

To set up sharing & discovery, first open a Network & Sharing Center window . Click the Start button, right-click the Network item, & then choose Properties from the context menu.

Making Sure Your Laptop Is on a Private Network

In the Network area, make sure that Win Vista knows your Laptop is connected to a private network. If the Network readout says “Public network,” follow these steps:

1. Click the Customize link. Win launches the Set Network Location Wizard, which displays the Customize Network Settings screen .

2. In the Network Name text box, check the name that’s entered. If Win Vista is still using “Network,” consider giving the network a more descriptive name - for example, “Home Network” or “Our Network.”

3. In the Location Type area, select the Private option button.

4. If you want to change the network icon used, click the Change button, select a different icon in the Change Network Icon dialog box, & then click the OK button.

5. Click the Next button & then authenticate yourself to User Account Control if necessary. The wizard displays the Successfully Set Network Settings screen.

6. Click the Close button.