Sharing Files with Microsoft Windows
When you share a folder, you can choose permissions that will allow or deny other network users access to the files in that folder. For client computers running Microsoft Windows, you can also specify whether other Windows users will be able to make the shared folder available offline.
To make a shared network file available offline, a version of the file is stored in a reserved portion of client computer disk space called a cache. The computer can access this cache regardless of whether the computer is connected to the network. When sharing files, you can use three caching options:
Manual caching for documents
When you manually cache documents, it provides offline access to only those files that a user accessing your server's shared folder specifically identifies. This caching option is ideal for a shared server folder containing files that are to be accessed and modified by several people. This is the default option when a shared folder is set up to be used offline.
Automatic caching for documents
Automatic caching for documents makes every file in your shared server folder available offline to others who open the files.
Automatic caching makes the contents of a folder available offline whether someone using your shared server folder specifically chooses to make them available or not. Documents, drawings, program files, and other files will all be available to users.
Only those files that someone opens in your shared server folder will continue to be available to that person when working offline.
Automatic caching for programs
Automatic caching for programs provides read-only offline access to shared folder files. This caching option is ideal for making files available offline that are referenced, run, or read, but that should not be changed in the process. Automatic caching for programs reduces network traffic because offline files are opened directly, without accessing the network versions in any way, and generally start and run faster than the network versions.
When you use automatic caching for programs, be sure to restrict permissions on the shared folder files to read-only access.
Related Topics
Setting Windows (CIFS) Sharing Properties
Setting UNIX (NFS) Sharing Properties
Setting FTP Sharing Properties