Connecting to ACES Shared Drives

Connect to College of ACES shared drives on a Windows PC, Mac, or Chromebook.

This article contains three sections for connecting to shared drives using different devices. Click your OS below to go straight to your instructions.

Section A - Windows
Section B - MacOS
Section C - Chromebook

Section A - Connecting Windows to Shared Drive

First, if you're off campus, you'll need to make sure you're connect to the campus VPN service. Information on that can be found here: https://answers.illinois.edu/47507
  1. Open Windows Explorer, which you can do by opening any folder, or My Documents.
  2. In the pane on the left side, find “This PC” (“My Computer” in Windows 7) and click it.

    Image of This PC in Windows.

  3. At the top of the window, make sure the “Computer” tab is selected. Click the “Map network drive” button.

    Image of Mapping Network Drive in Windows.

  4. Select your drive letter in the dropdown, and in the Folder box enter the following, where DEPT is your department abbreviation (ABE, ACE, FSHN, or HDFS):

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\DEPT\share

    Note: CPSC and NRES have a slightly different name structure, omitting the Share folder. CPSC and NRES address is as follows:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\CPSC\ and\\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\NRES\

    Note: For CCRS, the path is as follows:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\HDFS\CCRS

    You can also map your personal drive (commonly your H: or T: drive, depending on department) the same way, using the following path and replacing NetID with your actual NetID:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\Users\NetID

    Image of the drive mapping window in Windows.

  5. Make sure 'Reconnect at sign-in' is checked.

    If you're using a University computer, click Finish and you're all set here. If you're using a personal computer, continue reading.

  6. Make sure 'Connect using different credentials' is checked.
  7. In the credentials window that comes up, enter UOFI\NETID where NETID is your own NetID, and your NetID password. Check 'Remember my credentials' and click OK.


    Image of Windows Credentials.

  8. When the drive is mapped, it will appear in the This PC tab.

    An image of a mapped drive in Windows.

Section B - Connecting macOS to Shared Drive

First, if you're off campus, you'll need to make sure you're connect to the campus VPN service. Information on that can be found here: https://answers.illinois.edu/47629

  1. Click in a blank space on your desktop to make sure Finder is selected. 
  2. In the menu at the top, click the 'Go' tab and go down to 'Connect to Server...' at the bottom of the list.

    Image of Connect to Server on macOS.

  3. In the window, enter the following, where DEPT is your department abbreviation (ACE, CPSC, FSHN, HDFS, NRES, etc.):

    smb://ad.uillinois.edu/aces/DEPT/share 

    Note: CPSC and NRES have a slightly different name structure, omitting the Share folder. CPSC and NRES address is as follows:

    smb://ad.uillinois.edu/aces/CPSC/ 
    and //ad.uillinois.edu/aces/NRES/

    Note: For CCRS, the path is as follows:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\HDFS\CCRS

    You can also map your personal drive (commonly your H: or T: drive, depending on department) the same way, using the following path and replacing NetID with your actual NetID:

    smb://ad.uillinois.edu/aces/Users/NetID

    Image of the server connection window in macOS.

  4. Click the + button at the bottom left to save it as a favorite. 
  5. Click the Connect button and hit OK when it asks you. 
  6. Make sure Registered User is selected.

    Image of the credentials window in macOS.

  7. Enter UOFI\NETID where NETID is your own NetID, and your NetID password. 
  8. Check the box to "remember this password in my keychain." 
  9. Then click Connect, and you should be good to go.
  10. To reconnect to the shared drive, follow the same steps above up to Step 3, and the share will be saved under Favorite Servers. You can just select it and click Connect.

Section C - Connecting Chromebook to Shared Drive

First, if you're off campus, you'll need to make sure you're connect to the campus VPN service. Information on that can be found here: https://answers.illinois.edu/101477
  1. Open the app drawer at the bottom left, then click the arrow to open it fully.

    ChromeOS app drawer
  2. Open the App Store.

    ChromeOS apps
  3. Search for “network file share,” then click “Apps” on the left to filter. Click “Add to Chrome” next to the Network File Share for Chrome option. Click “Add app” in the dialog box that appears.

    ChromeOS app store
  4. Once it’s installed, open the app drawer again and choose Files.

    ChromeOS Files
  5. In the Files window, click the three vertical dots at the top-right. Navigate to Add new service, then select Network File Share for Chrome OS.

    ChromeOS file explorer
  6. In the share path, enter the following, where DEPT is your department abbreviation (ABE, ACE, FSHN, or HDFS):

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\DEPT\share

    Note: CPSC and NRES have a slightly different name structure, omitting the Share folder. CPSC and NRES address is as follows:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\CPSC\ and\\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\NRES\

    Note: For CCRS, the path is as follows:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\HDFS\CCRS

    You can also map your personal drive (commonly your H: or T: drive, depending on department) the same way, using the following path and replacing NetID with your actual NetID:

    \\ad.uillinois.edu\aces\Users\NetID

    In the Display Name field, enter any display name you like.

    Make sure to check “My file share needs a password.”

    In the Username field, enter UOFI\YourNetID.

    In the Password field, enter your NetID password.

    Check the box to store credentials if you wish, then click Mount.
    ChromeOS connect to shared drive
  7. The file share will now be visible under the display name you chose on the left side of the Files window.

    ChromeOS shared drive


If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact your ACES IT Pro. You can find your department's IT contact information here: https://techsupport.aces.illinois.edu/departmental-it-offices


Keywordsshare, drive, ACES, remote   Doc ID98928
OwnerJoshua H.GroupAnswers @ ACES
Created2020-03-16 15:11:50Updated2024-02-26 12:56:51
SitesUniversity of Illinois - College of ACES
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