RPi 5 OMV NAS - Not recognised by W11

1st Official Post

    After what seemed to be a successful build based on a RPi 5 and a Nvme SSD in a unified case, I can connect to VMO using my browser, but networking it via windows explorer is a non-event. I have checked all settings, Workgroup name included, and still no go. I made all the usual W11 tweaks including enabling SBM1, file sharing and private network. The windows computer can see all the other computers n the workgroup. I also tried with an Apple Macbook on the same workgroup, and it would not see or connect to the NAS either.


    I have been reading threads on these forums, but there seems no messages relating to connecting to the NAS. Now connecting is the whole point of a NAS, isn't it? So how do other achieve this?


    I'd love to find out - before I trash the setup and use the parts elsewhere. Any help will be appreciated.

  • votdev

    Approved the thread.
    • Official Post
    Quote from PilotPete

    So how do other achieve this?

    Try it by following this guide --> https://wiki.omv-extras.org/doku.php?id=omv8:new_user_guide

    Do not enable SMB1. It's a security weakness, obsolete, and unnecessary.


    Did you:


    Create a new user in OMV?

    Create a shared folder and allow the new user access to it?

    Add the shared folder on OMV's Samba tab?

    Re-check your user's access permissions, both on the filesystem and Samba service levels?


    Does Windows let you see the shared folder? Does it ask you for a login and password? When you enter the new user's name and password, what happens?

    Hi cubemin, thanks for taking the trouble to comment. Re- SMB1, if I don't enable it, Windows 11 will not see ANY other computers in my workgroup. So it is enabled for that reason, not just for OMV.


    I have created a new user in OMV - the name of the computer from which I want to access the NAS. It is in the "users" group. I have no idea the users access permissions live, nor what you mean by "file system" and "Samba service levels". Which file system you mean (VMO or the Users) and where to find the Samba Service levels to be able to check them.


    The user home directory is enabled, and points to the shared folder on the NAS.


    When embarking on this project, I had hoped that it would be relatively straight forward if not exactly plug-n-play. But it is starting to look like I should be a network engineer to make sense of it.


    I do appreciate you interest, and if you could point me in the right direction, even if its "that's beyond you - give up", I would appreciate it.

    Hi chente!


    I followed the link to the user guide, but found it confusing. Just a couple of points:

    From Wiki New Users Guide

    The project focus is on creating and maintaining a stable and extensible NAS system that is intuitive and easy to use. Stable it may be, but easy - No.


    One of the ambitions of the openmediavault project is to make advanced NAS technologies and features available to inexperienced users in an easy to use WEB GUI. I find the Web Gui anything but easy. Just confusing.


    An installation walk-through:


    Boot Menu: Select Install. there is a nice pic of a blue colored menu. But they don't say where to find it. Or how do I get to it? Is it in the web interface, or somewhere on the host R-Pi? They just assume that it is obvious.


    The guide seems to raise more questions than it answers.


    _____________________________________________


    This is my second attempt at building a NAS using a Pi. I also have a number of other Pis running in the office ,at home and in my aircraft, so I am not exactly a newbie. My coding might be a bit sketchy, but I can generally follow installation instructions. But this one seems to have me stumped. I don't like to give up, but it is getting close.

    • Official Post

    To understand Linux permissions, you can start here -->https://wiki.omv-extras.org/do…omv7:nas_permissions_omv7

    You should expect a learning curve when managing any NAS. If you choose an open-source operating system like OMV, the curve will be a bit steeper than with a commercial NAS. But anyone can learn to use OMV. Don't expect plug-and-play functionality.

    • Official Post

    To install an OMV correctly on a Raspberry Pi, you should follow these instructions. Did you do it? https://wiki.omv-extras.org/do…omv8:raspberry_pi_install

    • Official Post

    Sorry for the quick replies. I have to go to work. Your questions are easy to answer, but I don't have time right now. If no one has answered you in detail, I'll do so when I get back.

    • Official Post

    Forget workgroups. This isn't Windows. All you need to share a folder is:

    1. Create a shared folder.

    2. Create a user.

    3. Grant that user read/write permissions for that folder.

    4. Enable the Samba service.

    5. Share that folder using Samba.


    After that, connect to the server, and Windows will ask for your username and password. Enter the username you granted permissions to for that folder and their password.


    All of this is explained in more detail in the guide I gave you. You don't need to be an engineer to manage a NAS with OMV. You just need to forget Windows, open your mind, and do a little reading.


    Keep in mind that this is free software. The developers and everyone here do this in our free time without getting anything in return. I hope that makes you reflect a little on the tone of your questions and answers. Don't get me wrong, some users come to the forum demanding things as if this were Windows—software you've paid for and therefore have the right to expect to work perfectly, be perfectly documented, etc. That's not the case.


    Regarding the OMV installation and that lovely blue screen, that guide describes the "normal" installation process on an amd64 system. Perhaps you haven't read the previous points where it's mentioned that the installation on a Raspberry Pi has a specific procedure, and a link to that procedure is provided. That link is the same one I gave you in another post in this thread. Therefore, you're reading the installation procedure in the wrong place.


    Simply follow that link and strictly adhere to all the steps without skipping any to correctly install OMV on a Raspberry Pi. If you've already followed a procedure found online, we cannot guarantee that your system will behave as expected.


    Welcome to the forum.

    I've prepared some screenshots from my own OMV system to give you a visual aid of the steps that chente listed above. I hope this helps make things clearer for you.


    To add a user (pilotpete in this example) - note, you do not need to specify any groups (this is for advanced scenarios). OMV automatically puts users in the 'users' group.



    To create a shared folder - here, I'm choosing my RAID array /dev/dm-0 as an example location to create the shared folder in. Leave permissions as they are (granting read/write access to 'Users' in particular).


    These are filesystem permissions, defining who has what kind of access to the storage volume (/dev/dm-0 in my case) where all my data lives.



    To grant your user access to this shared folder - here I'm showing some of mine, with 'Media' highlighted. You would highlight your 'somenewfolder' share. Then, on the toolbar just above, click on the third icon from the left - the little folder with a key in it.



    Below, you can see that one of my users, "duckula," has read-write access to my 'Media' share. You would use this to grant read-write access to pilotpete.



    This is on top of the filesystem permissions mentioned above. Now pilotpete is allowed to access share 'somenewfolder' through Samba or FTP or NFS or whatever else OMV provides. (But we're not quite there yet, as we will now enable Samba access next.)


    Samba should be enabled in the OMV GUI via Services -> SMB/CIFS -> Settings. If this is new to you, don't worry too much about any of the other settings yet, with the exception of your workgroup name (directly underneath the 'Enabled' checkbox) which you'll want to set to the same name as what your Windows/Mac clients use.



    Please do not get ideas and change the 'Minimum protocol version' further down on this page to SMB1. This is really discouraged - and honestly, it seems a bit strange that, as you claim, your Windows machine doesn't see any Samba shares unless it has SMB1 enabled. But that's for another day...


    To make a share available via Samba and add your user - simply click on the + icon to create a Samba share. Then select 'somenewfolder' from the dropdown list (not shown here) to make it available via Samba. Leave other options on default for now.



    Now your user pilotpete should be able to see 'somenewfolder' on networked machines and connect to it using the password you set for this user.


    Feel free to ask for more support if you still encounter any difficulties.

    • Official Post

    cubemin

    I really love seeing that there are people who have the patience to do what you just did. Thank you.

    Hi BstAA. Thanks for the thought, but I don't understand what you mean by "the user on your W11 System". There are about 7 computers on the workgroup/system, each only identified by the netbios name. Or do you mean the user on my W11 computer?

    Quote

    Just a hint: the “user” for simplicity should have the name of the user on your Win11 system not the name of your computer.

    That's not true.
    I have the same config with a Pi4 and I can access my NAS share by all PCs (different Windows Users, Linux as well), by my TV, by my Pixel phone.


    To do's: Define the share drives or folders, the SMB/CIFs (SMB3!) share, enable SMB and the user on OMV you want to use.
    Does your drive has a filesystem (e.g. Ext4)? Only then you're able to define shares. Keep in mind to allocate 100% instead of proposed 85%. That was an initial setting which drove me mad 'cause I couldn't define shares ....


    It's a bit confusing for Linux beginners but it's following a logical process.

    Hardware: Pi4 + 2 WD MyBooks on USB3, OMV 8.5.5-1 (Synchrony), Plugins: FTP, Writecache, Fail2ban, SMB/CIF, SSH, APT, CPUTemp)

    Quote from PilotPete

    Hi BstAA. Thanks for the thought, but I don't understand what you mean by "the user on your W11 System". There are about 7 computers on the workgroup/system, each only identified by the netbios name. Or do you mean the user on my W11 computer?

    Your user on OMV can have any name you want - it's completely unrelated to which users or admin roles you have on your networked PCs.


    If your OMV user's name is Bob and the password is Alice, then when you browse to the shared folder from Windows, it will ask you to provide credentials and you'll type in Bob and Alice. You then have read/write access to the folder as Bob, regardless of whether you're admin or Cecil or Fiona or whoever on Windows. 🙂

    • Official Post
    Quote from cubemin

    regardless of whether you're admin or Cecil or Fiona or whoever on Windows

    Well... I'm not sure... Fiona has Shrek, who's capable of anything...


    Hey cabemin, thanks for that. It would be good if I ever got to the stage where window explorer even asked me for creds.


    I read that OMV doesn't like Trixie as an OS. And that's what I've got. So it looks like I will have to reflash the SD with bookworm, and reload OMV.


    Thoughts, anyone?

    OMV 8 is currently the only supported version of Openmediavault. OMV 8 runs on Debian Trixie (and Raspberry PI OS on RPI)!


    Two sources that you can trust in that order:

    1. openmediavault.org with the documentation and this forum. This is the official site and forum of the developer!
    2. omv-extras.org with the extra plugins and their tutorials.


    Read the install guide in the official documentation and then head over to omv-extras with New User Guide and Installing OMV8 on a Raspberry PI. The omv-extras guides take your hand and will guide you to a working system.

    Quote from PilotPete

    I read that OMV doesn't like Trixie as an OS. And that's what I've got. So it looks like I will have to reflash the SD with bookworm, and reload OMV.


    Thoughts, anyone?

    Yes, one thought - where on Earth did you hear that? OMV 8 is designed to run on Trixie.


    Make sure to follow the advice of erbsenzaehler - avoid unofficial guides, YouTube videos, and the like. Clearly, some of them provide plain wrong information, and it looks to me that's where your troubles stem from.


    "Doesn't like Trixie." 😳

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