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Windows Vista

Accessing and Using Your Network : Working with Offline Files and the Sync Center (part 1) - Working with Network Files Offline

8/4/2013 6:47:56 PM
You simply share a folder with the network, and other users can use their Network folder to open the shared folder and work with the files.

However, this benefit is lost when you disconnect from the network. For example, suppose that you use a notebook computer to connect to the network while you are at the office. When you take the notebook on the road, you must disconnect from the network. Fortunately, you can still get network access of a sort when you disconnect from the network (or are offline). Windows Vista (Business, Enterprise, or Ultimate) has an Offline Files feature that enables you to preserve copies of network files on your computer. You can then view and work with these files as though you were connected to the network.

1. Enabling Offline Files

Vista has offline files enabled by default. Follow these steps to make sure that your system has them enabled:

1.
Select Start, Control Panel, Network and Internet, Offline Files. Vista opens the Offline Files dialog box.

2.
If you see the Enable Offline Files button, select it. (If you see the Disable Offline Files button instead, offline files are enabled, so skip to step 4.)

3.
Enter your UAC credentials.

4.
Click OK. Vista prompts you to restart your computer to put the new setting into effect.

5.
Click Yes.

Tip

If you’re an administrator, the Group Policy editor offers a large number of policies related to offline files. For example, you can prohibit users from configuring the Offline Files feature, set default synchronization options, prevent certain files and folders from being made available offline, and disable offline files altogether. In the Group Policy editor, open the User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Network, Offline Files branch.


Caution

If you want to work with sensitive data offline on a notebook computer, bear in mind that a thief could easily steal your notebooks and might be able to access the sensitive data. To guard against this scenario, you can encrypt your offline files if you have the Encrypting File System, which is available with the Vista Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate versions. Select Start, Control Panel, Network and Internet, Offline Files, display the Encryption tab, and click Encrypt.


2. Making Files Available Offline

With the Offline Files feature turned on, follow these steps to make network files available offline:

1.
Use Windows Explorer to open the folder that contains the shared network folder that you want to use offline.

2.
Select the folders you want to use offline.

3.
Right-click any selected folder, and click Always Available Offline.

Windows Vista synchronizes the folders for offline use. While the initial synchronization occurs, Vista displays the Always Available Offline dialog box. If you’re using quite a few files offline, the synchronization might take a long time. If so, click Close to hide the Always Available Offline dialog box. (You can redisplay it by clicking the Sync Center icon in the taskbar’s notification area.)

When the initial synchronization finishes, you can disconnect from the network and work with the files offline.

Tip

A quick way to disconnect is to open a folder set up for offline use and then click Work Offline in the task pane.


3. Working with Network Files Offline

Windows XP handled offline files by creating a special Offline Files folder that contained all the shared network files that you chose to work with offline. Vista handles offline files a bit differently. Specifically, you now have two ways to work with offline files:

  • Work with the files “in place” using the remote computer’s folder window— The objects available offline display the Offline Files icon superimposed on their regular icon and, when you select an offline object, the Details pane shows Offline (not connected) as the Offline Status (see Figure 1).

    Figure 1. A shared network folder displayed offline.

    Tip

    You can’t navigate to a remote computer’s folder via Start, Network because Vista will tell you that you aren’t connected to a network. Either leave the remote computer’s folder window open when you disconnect or type the remote computer’s UNC path into the Run dialog box or Explorer Address bar.


  • Work with the files using Sync Center— Select Start, Control Panel, Network and Internet, Sync Center. (Alternatively, double-click the Sync Center icon in the notification area.) Click View Sync Partnerships (although this is selected by default), and then double-click Offline Files, shown in Figure 2.

    Figure 2. Use Vista’s new Sync Center to keep your offline files synchronized.

You can open and edit the files just as though you were connected to the network.

Other -----------------
- Accessing and Using Your Network : Sharing Resources with the Network (part 3) - Hiding Shared Resources
- Accessing and Using Your Network : Sharing Resources with the Network (part 2) - Sharing a Resource
- Accessing and Using Your Network : Sharing Resources with the Network (part 1) - Setting Up File and Printer Sharing, Deactivating the Sharing Wizard
- Accessing and Using Your Network : Accessing Network Resources
- Accessing and Using Your Network : Learning Some Common Network Tasks
- Collecting Vista Events
- Automating Vista Events
- Exploring the Vista Task Scheduler
- Tracking Change in Vista : Turning on the audit policy, Exploring the Vista Event Log
- Managing Change through Group Policy (part 4) - Assigning PC-Related GPOs, Troubleshooting and monitoring Group Policy
- Managing Change through Group Policy (part 3) - Working with GPO tools
- Managing Change through Group Policy (part 2) - Working with central policies
- Managing Change through Group Policy (part 1) - Working with Local Policies
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 7) - Working with external access - Working with Public Key Infrastructures, Working with Virtual Private Network connections
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 6) - Working with external access - Working with the Windows Firewall with Advanced Security
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 5) - Managing information access
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 4) - Hardening the system - USB Device Control, Windows Defender
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 3) - Hardening the system - User Account Control
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 2) - Hardening the system - Local Security Policy and security configurations
- Securing the Workstation : Applying the Castle Defense System (part 1) - Protecting information, Working with protection
 
 
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