Question
How do I transfer files between Windows and macOS?
Solution
There are multiple ways to accomplish this task. The first option detailed in this article involves sending files over a network; once the machines are connected, you can use either the Mac or the PC as the host. Other options include using a USB storage device (USB flash drive or hard drive), and using Microsoft OneDrive. Most affiliations at the University are eligible for 1 TB of storage space at this service hosted by Microsoft.
Via network using Windows as the host
- File sharing first needs to be enabled on the Windows machine. This process is different depending on the version of Windows.
- Windows 7:
- Go to Control Panel.
- Click Network and Sharing Center
- Click Homegroup and Sharing options.
- Select Advanced Sharing Settings.
- Navigate to File and Printer Sharing.
- Click Turn on File and Printer Sharing.
- Save changes.
- Windows 8:
- Go to Control Panel.
- Click Network and Internet.
- Click Network and Sharing Center.
- Select Advanced Sharing Settings.
- Navigate to File and Printer Sharing.
- Click Turn on File and Printer Sharing.
- Save changes.
- Windows 10:
- Go to Settings.
- Choose Network and Internet.
- Choose Network and Sharing Center.
- Select Change advanced sharing settings.
- Navigate to File and Printer Sharing.
- Click Turn on File and Printer Sharing.
- Save changes.
- Next, we need to connect to the Windows machine from the Mac. You can do this in one of two ways:
- Option 1:
- Open up a Finder window.
- In the left pane, select Network.
- Often, you will find it under Favorites or Recent.
- If Network is not shown, click Go in the Menu Bar in the top left of your screen, and select Network from there.
- Find the name of the Windows machine you wish to share with.
- Click on the machine to bring up a folder view, where you can drag and drop files to/from the shared folder.
- Option 2 (more advanced):
- Open up a Finder window.
- Click Go > Connect to Server.
- The shortcut for this is Command+K.
- Type in the prefix smb://, followed by the ip address or hostname of the Windows machine.
- For example: smb://192.168.1.102 or smb://MyPC
Via network using macOS as the host
- File sharing first needs to be enabled on the Mac machine.
- Go to System Preferences.
- Click on Sharing.
- Ensure File Sharing is checked.
- Click Options.
- Ensure Share files and folders using SMB (Windows) is checked.
- Make a note of the address (IP or Hostname) of the Mac. It will be listed at the top of the sharing window
- Next, we need to connect to the Mac machine from Windows.
- Go to Start.
- Use the Quick Search bar to type in \\, followed by the address of the Mac.
- For example: \\192.168.1.102 or \\MyMac
Using an external hard drive or USB flash drive
- When sharing files across different operating systems, it is important to make sure the media (transfer device) is of a file format supported by both platforms.
- Common file system formats are NTFS, HFS, APFS, exFAT, and FAT32.
- NTFS has universal support on Windows. Macs are able to read this format, but cannot write files.
- HFS and APFS have universal support on newer Mac operating systems. Windows cannot access this format at any capacity.
- exFAT and FAT32 are supported by both platforms, so this is recommended. FAT32 cannot support file sizes above 2 GB, so exFAT is preferred.
- To format a device to a different file system, you must have all existing data backed up to one of your computers, as it will be lost when the file system is changed.
- For Windows:
- Search for My PC.
- Right-click the device of which you'd like to change the file system format.
- Click Format on the context menu.
- Use the file system drop-down menu to pick your preferred format (ex. exFAT).
- Click Format on the bottom of the screen.
- Confirm you're aware existing USB device data will be lost.
- For Mac:
- Click the magnifying glass in the upper-right corner of the screen
- Search for DiskUtility.app.
- In the left column, look for your USB drive beneath External and click it once to highlight it.
- You may see a partition under the drive, but you can ignore this.
- Click Erase in Disk Utility and select the preferred file system format (ex. exFAT).
- The other settings shouldn't be important.
- Confirm that the data on the USB will be deleted.
- Exit Disk Utility.
- Once you've verified that you have a file system format that is suitable for the transfer, simply transfer the files via the USB drive.
- Please be sure to safely eject/safely remove the drive before unplugging it
- For Windows:
- Right-click the icon of a USB drive in the system tray.
- You may need to click the up-arrow to see it.
- Click Eject <your USB's name>.
- For Mac:
- Drag the USB's icon to the Trash.
- The Trash icon will change to the ejection symbol.
Using Microsoft OneDrive
- On the computer initializing the transfer, go to the Office 365 portal.
- Log in with your full UO email address and password.
- Click on OneDrive.
- Click Upload.
- Choose File or Folder, depending on which you plan to upload.
- In the small selection window that appears, you can select a range of files by holding the shift key on Mac, or the command key/control key on Windows.
- In the upper-right corner of OneDrive, you will see Uploading item(s) while your files are being updated.
- When this goes away, your files should be uploaded.
- Check your OneDrive's contents to ensure the upload was successful.
- To download the files on your recipient device:
- Repeat steps 1 and 2 above.
- Select the check marks on the files you wish to download.
- Choose Download.
- Save the files to the appropriate location on your device.