NAS 208

WebDAV – A Secure File Sharing Alternative

to FTP
Connect to your NAS via WebDAV

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 NAS 208: WebDAV – A Secure File Sharing Alternative to FTP

COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course you should be able to:

1. Have a basic understanding of WebDAV

2. Connect to an ASUSTOR NAS via WebDAV

PREREQUISITES
Course Prerequisites:
None

Students are expected to have a working knowledge of:

N/A

OUTLINE

1. Introduction to WebDAV
1.1 Introduction to WebDAV

2. Configuring your NAS

2.1 Enabling WebDAV service

3. Connecting via WebDAV

3.1 Connecting using a WebDAV client

3.2 Connecting using Windows 7

3.3 Connecting using Mac OS X (10.4 and above)

3.4 Connecting using a mobile device

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1. Introduction to WebDAV
1.1 Introduction to WebDAV
WebDAV is short for web-based distributed authoring and versioning. It is a set of extensions to the
HTTP(S) protocol that allows a web server to appear as a standard network drive. After enabling
WebDAV you will be able to remotely access your ASUSTOR NAS via HTTP or HTTPS protocol.
WebDAV clients are native to Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, etc. You can simply map/mount network
drives (web folders) from one of these operating systems to one or several of the shared folders on
the ASUSTOR NAS.

In the following examples we will show you how to enable WebDAV service on the NAS and how to
connect to your NAS via WebDAV in a variety of different ways.

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2. Configuring your NAS

2.1 Enabling WebDAV service

STEP 1
Select [Services]  [WebDAV]. Select the [Enable WebDAV service] checkbox and click [Apply].

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3. Connecting via WebDAV

3.1 Connecting using a WebDAV client
You can connect to WebDAV folders on the NAS by using third party software. In this example we will
be using a WebDAV client called NetDrive.

STEP 1
 Download and install NetDrive. (NetDrive can be found at http://www.netdrive.net)
 Open NetDrive and click on [New Site].
 In the [Site IP or URL] field enter your NAS’s IP address.
 For [Server Type] select [WebDAV].
 In the [Port] field enter the http port for WebDAV.
 For [Drive] select a letter for the drive that will appear on your computer once you are connected.
 In the [Account] and [Password] fields enter the username and password of your NAS user account.

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STEP 2
 Click on the [Advanced] button.
 For [Encoding], select [UTF-8] and then click on [OK].

STEP 3
 Click [Connect] once you are done.

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3.2 Connecting using Windows 7

Note: You must first decrease the security level for Windows 7 before being able to connect to
WebDAV folders.

STEP 1
In Windows click [Start] and then type “regedit.exe” into the [Search programs and files] field. Click
on [regedit].

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STEP 2
The Registry Editor will now appear.

 In the left hand panel navigate to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\WebClient\Parameters
 Double-click on [BasicAuthLevel]
 In the [Value data:] field, change the number to “2” and click [OK].
 Restart your computer.

STEP 3
Click [Start] and then right-click on [Computer] and select [Map network drive…].

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STEP 4
The Map Network Drive dialog box will now appear. Click on [Connect to a Web site that you can use
to store your documents and pictures.]

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STEP 5
The Add Network Location Wizard will now appear. Follow the instructions provided by the wizard.

Note: In the last step provided by the wizard, you will need to enter the location of the WebDAV folder
on your NAS. In the [Internet or network address] field please enter the location of the folder in the
following format:
http://NAS IP:WebDAV Port/WebDAV Folder

For example, if:

NAS IP: 172.16.1.250

WebDAV port: 9800
Folder you wish to connect to: Download

Then you would enter: http://172.16.1.250:9800/Download

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STEP 6
Once completed, you will be able to see a new network location under [Computer].

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3.3 Connecting using Mac OS X (10.4 and above)

STEP 1
Select [Finder]  [Connect to Server]. Enter the URL you wish to connect to into the [Server
Address:] field in the following format: “http://NAS IP:WebDAV Port/WebDAV Folder” and then click
on [Connect].

For example, if:

NAS IP: 172.16.1.250

WebDAV port: 9800
Folder you wish to connect to: Download

Then you would enter: http://172.16.1.250:9800/Download

Please note that folder names will be case-sensitive.

STEP 2
Enter your username and password and then click on [Connect].

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STEP 3
Your files and folders should now be accessible.

Note: You can also find the mountpoint for the WebDAV connection under [Shared] in the left hand
panel and make it one of your login items.

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3.4 Connecting using a mobile device

In this example we will show you the process of connecting to your NAS via WebDAV using an iPad.
We will be using a WebDAV client called “WebDAV Nav” which can be downloaded from Apple’s App
Store.

STEP 1
Open WebDAV Nav and then click on the [+] icon in the top right corner.

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STEP 2
Enter your connection information and then click on [Save].

Note: Please enter the location of the WebDAV folder into the [Server URL] field in the following format:
http://NAS IP:WebDAV Port/WebDAV Folder

For example, if:

NAS IP: 172.16.1.250

WebDAV port: 9800
Folder you wish to connect to: Download

Then you would enter: http://172.16.1.250:9800/Download

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STEP 3
Click on the name for your connection to connect to it.

STEP 4
You should now be able to access files from your NAS.

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