Adding a Samba user

Suppose we want to share some files with a certain user on our network.

First the user must exist on the host server:

$ sudo useradd jayne
$ sudo passwd jayne

Once the user has a local account their corresponding Samba samba user can be added using smbpasswd -a command. The smbpasswd command when used with -a option adds the new samba user and also allows you to set the password for the new samba user.

$ sudo smbpasswd -a jayne
New SMB password:
Retype new SMB password:

Configure the Samba share in the /etc/samba/smb.conf file to allow the new user to browse the share:

[share1]
comment = movies etc on thorpe
path = /path/to/sharedir
valid users = dave jayne
guest ok = no
read only = yes

Then, restart the samba service:

sudo service smbd restart