This document provides an overview of options for connecting a Macintosh to a PC or other computer on the same network. In this article a "PC" is a computer using Microsoft Windows with an AMD or Intel microprocessor.

There are several ways to connect to a Windows PC. First, you must physically connect the two computers to a network, which may be as simple as a single cable connecting the two. Once this is done, you must start some type of sharing (or file service) on at least one of the two computers.

The computer that is sharing is known as a server. The computer that connects to it is called a client.

To connect, the client computer just needs an application program that can connect to the type of service being offered. Sometimes this application is a built-in part of the operating system, such as the Mac OS X Finder or Windows file browser.

When you connect two computers together, it's useful to understand what is meant by "client" and "server." Though the idea conveyed by these terms is simple and generally consistent, there is an important variation on each: Any computer that offers a service is a "server" in that context. However, the term is also used to describe a computer or operating system that has been designed expressly for that purpose, such as Mac OS X Server. In addition to describing the computer, "client" is also used to describe the software used to connect to a particular service. A Web browser, for example, is an HTTP client.

For greatest convenience in a work environment, you may want everyone on the network to be able to freely connect to each other's computer. This would mean you need to achieve bi-directional service, in which each computer can both share to and connect to another computer. In the example of a Mac OS X 10.2 computer and a Windows 2000 computer, this is as simple as turning on sharing at each computer. In other examples below, additional software may be required to achieve this.

Making a physical connection

The physical components of an Ethernet network are compatible with computers that use many different operating systems--such as Mac OS, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and UNIX. You can connect all of these computers to the same physical network, which may be wired or wireless (AirPort, for example).

Making a service connection

Services are designed for various tasks, such as transferring files, webpage’s, or print jobs. Common examples that you may use are:

AppleShare (also known as AFP, Personal File Sharing, Apple File Service)

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP, used primarily for webpage’s)

LPR (Line Printer Request, common for printing)

SMB (Windows file sharing)

To get two computers on the same network to communicate with each other, you must identify a client-service relationship that they have in common. When you have computers using different operating systems on your network, it may help you to list the services offered by each operating system. You could then list the services each operating system can connect to using its built-in client software, such as the Chooser (Mac OS 9), the Connect to Server command (Mac OS X), the Windows file browser, or a Web browser. If you identify gaps in the desired client-service arrangement, third-party software may provide the missing components, thus adding possibilities that do not exist "out-of-box." Here are several examples:

For each example scenario, other options exist. Before you can connect, a service must be intentionally turned on at the computer that offers it. For more information, see the documents linked below.

Connect Windows 2000 to Mac OS X 10.2 or 10.3

Mac OS X 10.2 or later offers Windows File Sharing (SMB). Windows connects to SMB.

Connect Mac OS X to Windows 2000

Windows 2000 offers SMB service. Mac OS X 10.1 or later can connect to SMB service in the Finder.

Connect Windows 2000 to Mac OS X 10.1

Mac OS X 10.1 can offer FTP service, found in Sharing preferences. Windows 2000 can connect using any standard FTP client, which includes many Web browsers.

Connect Mac OS 9 to Mac OS X

Mac OS X offers file sharing service (AppleShare). Mac OS 9 can connect to AppleShare from the Chooser.

Connect Windows 98 to Mac OS 9

Mac OS 9 can offer HTTP service, which can be used to transfer either Web pages or files when configured properly. Windows 98 (and many other operating systems) can connect with a standard Web browser.

Connect Mac OS 9 to Windows 98

Windows 98 offers SMB service. If you install third-party SMB client software on Mac OS 9, then it can connect to SMB.

SMB = server message block

The Server Message Block Protocol (SMB protocol) provides a method for client applications in a computer to read and write to files on and to request services from server programs in a computer network. The SMB protocol can be used over the Internet on top of its TCP/IP protocol or on top of other network protocols such as Internetwork Packet Exchange and NetBEUI. Using the SMB protocol, an application (or the user of an application) can access files at a remote server as well as other resources, including printers, mail slots, and named pipes. Thus, a client application can read, create, and update files on the remote server. It can also communicate with any server program that is set up to receive an SMB client request.

Microsoft Windows operating systems since Windows 95 include client and server SMB protocol support. For Unix systems, a shareware program, Samba, is available. The SMB protocol originated at Microsoft and has gone through a number of developments. A given client and server may implement different sets of protocol variations which they negotiate before starting a session.

Microsoft has offered a public or open source version of SMB for the Internet to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Called the Common Internet File System (CIFS), this new protocol provides more flexibility than existing Internet applications such as the File Transfer Protocol (FTP). CIFS is envisioned as a complement to the Internet's Hypertext Transfer Protocol for Web browsing.