Connect to Files@Iowa
Off Campus, Non-domain Macs

Are you off campus and need to access Files@Iowa on your personal Mac?

This page describes two ways to access Files@Iowa from off campus. If you have high-speed Internet access, you may install the AnyConnect client and use the Virtual Private Network (VPN) to access the home and shared drives. If you are using dial-up access (or just want quick access to a file), you may use your web browser to access these file locations (see below).

Using the AnyConnect Client to Access Home and Shared Drives

If your Mac is not in the Iowa Domain, you can use the Virtual Private Network (VPN) to access your home and shared drives when you are off the campus network. (How to check if your Mac is in the Iowa domain.) If you install the AnyConnect client on your computer, when you are off campus you can log on to the AnyConnect client and access your home and shared drives as if you were on campus. Click here for directions on how to install and use the AnyConnect client. You may then add these file locations to your dock for easy access.

Connecting to Home and Shared Drives Through the Finder

NOTE: You can manually connect to your Home and Shared drives and then drag the folder to your dock for easy access to your files. The next time you access the network, you can click on the folder in the dock and authenticate to access your files.

  1. Under the Go menu select Connect to Server.



  2. When the server connection box comes up, type in the name of the server you are trying to access using the smb protocol and click on Connect.
    • To connect to your personal network storage space, enter smb://home.iowa.uiowa.edu/hawkid (replace "hawkid" with your own Hawk ID).
    • To connect to your work files, enter smb://shared.iowa.uiowa.edu/deptname (replace "deptname" with your department name on the file system; if you do not know this name, please contact your local IT support staff or the ITS Help Desk).




  3. For example, here someone has connected to the ITS shared folder. Drag the "ITS" icon from the Finder to the "Stacks" area on the dock (to the right of the dashed line) for easy access while you're using your Mac.


    4. 4. Next time you log in to your computer, you can click on the folder in the dock to access your files. (You may still need to authenticate if you are not logged in to the AnyConnect client.)

    Using a Web Browser to Access Home and Shared Drives

    If you just want quick access to a file on your home or shared drive, you may connect to the Virtual Private Network through your web browser and download files to your computer, or you may use MyFiles to access files on your home drive:

     

If you have questions, please contact your technical support staff member or the ITS HelpDesk (384-HELP or its-helpdesk@uiowa.edu).