Share OS X files with Ubuntu VM

[thorby]

[edited and simplified]

Using Parallels Desktop for Mac, the user guide does not discuss how to share host files and folders with a Virtual Machine (VM) when the VM cannot run the Parallel Tools provided for Windows.

I have successfully shared folders using SAMBA protocol between a VM running Ubuntu Linux and the Mac host. The process works very well under with a VM running Ubuntu -- specific menus and commands will differ with other Linuxen.

To enable SAMBA file sharing in Ubuntu, launch the Synaptic package manager. Search for the package named smbfs. If it is not installed, mark it for installation and click Apply to install it. After it has been installed, restart Ubuntu.

To enable SAMBA file sharing in OS X, go to the Sharing pane of System Preferences. Click the radio button to enable Windows Sharing. With Windows Sharing hilited, the message appears below the service window Windows users can access your computer at \\nn.nn.nn.nn\username.

To enable sharing in any Ubuntu session, select the menu item Places > Connect to Server. In the resulting dialog, select Windows Share from the Service Type pop-up. Type the Mac's IP address (the nn.nn.nn.nn from the Sharing window) in the Server field. Type the username from the Sharing window in the User Name field. Click Connect. You may be asked for the password for username. A new volume appears on the Ubuntu desktop containing a view of the shared files and folders.

[donnie]

I have also successfully shared Ubuntu VM folders to the host Mac using NFS on Ubuntu. This link is extremely helpful:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SettingUpNFSHowTo

[thorby]

I have also successfully shared Ubuntu VM folders to the host Mac using NFS on Ubuntu. This link is extremely helpful:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SettingUpNFSHowTo
I did not read this in great detail but it appears quite a bit more complicated than the simple smbfs process I gave.

Also the mapping between "NFS-Server" and "NFS-client" -- on one hand -- and "Ubuntu VM" and "Mac OS X host" on the other hand... is not obvious to me. Which parts of this are done in the Linux VM and which (if any?) in the OS X terminal window?

Very possibly if high performance is an issue, or connecting from the Linux VM to a different (real) system on the local network, then NFS is the better solution. But for a simple ability to push a couple of files from OS X into the VM or vice-versa, smbfs seems adequate to me.

[cb750]

Thanks Thorby, I am a Linux/ubuntu newbie and your instructions were very useful.

[donnie]

You are right that setting up NFS is a bit complicated, although it works beautifully once configured. I set up both host Mac and guest Ubuntu to each be both an NFS server and an NFS client. It's all done in terminal on both ends, except that the NFS client on the Mac side is handled in the Finder (Go | Connect to Server). Also, there are GUI tools available on the Mac side to set up the server, if you like.

I got around the NFS mapping issue by allowing anonymous but limiting access to my specific internal IP addresses.

[avn]

Through the Samba share, does your connection to the desktop work when you are not connected to the network? I am using a laptop, and it would really be a bummer if I can only share between the two when I am networked.