# Managing SMB shares
<a name="create-smb-shares"></a>

To manage SMB file shares on your Amazon FSx file system, you can use the Microsoft Windows Shared Folders GUI. The Shared Folders GUI provides a central location for managing all shared folders in your storage virtual machine (SVM). The following procedures detail how to create, update, and remove your file shares.

**Note**  
You can also manage SMB file shares by using the NetApp System Manager. For more information, see [Using NetApp System Manager with NetApp Console](managing-resources-ontap-apps.md#netapp-sysmgr-bluexp).

**To connect shared folders to your Amazon FSx file system**

1. Launch your Amazon EC2 instance and connect it to the Microsoft Active Directory that your Amazon FSx file system is joined to. To do this, choose one of the following procedures from the *AWS Directory Service Administration Guide*:
   + [Seamlessly join a Windows EC2 instance](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/directoryservice/latest/admin-guide/launching_instance.html)
   + [Manually join a Windows instance](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/directoryservice/latest/admin-guide/join_windows_instance.html)

1. Connect to your instance as a user that is a member of the file system administrators group. For more information, see [Connecting to Your Windows Instance](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/WindowsGuide/connecting_to_windows_instance.html) in the *Amazon EC2 User Guide*.

1. Open the **Start** menu and run **fsmgmt.msc** using **Run As Administrator**. Doing this opens the Shared Folders GUI tool.

1. For **Action**, choose **Connect to another computer**.

1. For **Another computer**, enter the DNS name for your storage virtual machine (SVM), for example **netbios\$1name.corp.example.com**. 

   To find your SVM's DNS name on the Amazon FSx console, choose **Storage virtual machines**, choose your SVM, and then scroll down to **Endpoints** until you find **SMB DNS name**. You can also get the DNS name in the response of the [DescribeStorageVirtualMachines](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/fsx/latest/APIReference/API_DescribeStorageVirtualMachines.html) API operation.

1. Choose **OK**. An entry for your Amazon FSx file system then appears in the list for the Shared Folders tool.

Now that Shared Folders is connected to your Amazon FSx file system, you can manage the Windows file shares on the file system with the following actions:

**Note**  
We recommend that you locate your SMB shares on a volume other than your root volume.
+ **Create a new file share** – In the Shared Folders tool, choose **Shares** in the left pane to see the active shares for your Amazon FSx file system. Volumes are shown mounted on the path chosen during volume creation. Choose **New Share** and complete the Create a Shared Folder wizard.

  You have to create the local folder prior to creating the new file share. You can do so as follows: 
  + Using the Shared Folders tool: choose **Browse** when specifying a local folder path, choose **Make new folder** to create the local folder.
  + Using command line:

    ```
    New-Item -Type Directory -Path \\netbios_name.corp.example.com\C$volume_path\MyNewFolder
    ```
+ **Modify a file share** – In the Shared Folders tool, open the context (right-click) menu for the file share that you want to modify in the right pane, and choose **Properties**. Modify the properties and choose **OK**.
+ **Remove a file share** – In the Shared Folders tool, open the context (right-click) menu for the file share that you want to remove in the right pane, and then choose **Stop Sharing**.
**Note**  
Removing file shares from the GUI is possible only if you connected to **fsmgmt.msc** using the DNS name of the Amazon FSx file system. If you connected using the IP address or DNS alias name of the file system, the **Stop Sharing** option won't work and the file share isn't removed.