I'm totally lost

[tomseeley]

I just tried to connect my new Mycloud and I have no idea if it’s working right at all. I use an AT&T Uverse modem/router. I conntected the Mycloud directly to it, without also putting an Ethernet switch in the circuit. It seemed to connect, but certainly it did not do that the way the pdf user manual I was following said it would. Almost none of the screens or windows the manual said I’d see during the setup process ever actually appeared on my computer screen, so I have no idea at all what actually happened or if I’m actually connected at all.

I set up a password and I can log in and get one screen that shows three folders for shared photos, shared music, and shared videos, all of which are empty at the moment. But I cannot find anything resembling what I think is called a dashboard.

I cannot find anything on screen once I’ve logged in, to click on to read device settings. I have no idea what firmware I’m supposed to be using. I downloaded the pdf user manual that WDC sent me but it doesn’t even talk about using Windows 10, which I do, so how can I be certain I’m even following the right instructions? Almost none of the windows or screens I saw in that manual appeared on my screen during the setup process.

I have no clue at all what’s going on. This is very frustrating!

My P/N is WDBCTL0020HWT-10. My S/N is [Deleted]

[no_step]

I conntected the Mycloud directly to it

That’s perfectly fine, don’t need a switch for what you’re doing

I set up a password and I can log in and get one screen that shows three folders for shared photos, shared music, and shared videos, all of which are empty at the moment. But I cannot find anything resembling what I think is called a dashboard.

Try a couple of things: open windows file explorer, and on the left side (the navigation pane) you’ll see Quick Access, One Drive, This PC and Network. Click on network. On the right hand side on the main window the top should say computer, you’ll see a list of computers on your network, which should include WDMYCLOUD (unless you renamed the device). On the bottom of the main window under Storage you should see WDMYCLOUD (unless you renamed the device)

Double clicking the entry under computers should let you browse the file shares, which should be the default public directories. Double clicking the entry under Storage should open the web page to manage the device.

Let me know if that worked, and we can go from there

[mike27oct]

I believe I have see quite a few posts where people who have Uverse have issues with the My Cloud. I suggest you search the My Cloud forum for Uverse and see what you can find.

[cat0w]

Try this and see if it helps.

https://support.wdc.com/product.aspx?ID=904&lang=en

[Bennor]

You access the My Cloud Dashboard using one of the following web URL’s with your computer’s web browser
Windows: http://wdmycloud
Mac: http://wdmycloud.local

Or use the My Cloud’s IP address in place of the URL name.

See the following WD Support document for more information on accessing the My Cloud Dashboard.

http://support.wdc.com/KnowledgeBase/answer.aspx?ID=13965

[tomseeley]

Got it. My original problem was I didn’t know what firmware I have so I
couldn’t pick the right manual. Thx.

[tomseeley]

Hi. This worked. Thank you. I was overlooking the full page-wide list of
computers on my network, on the Windows screen that opens when I click on
Network.

Now to my next question. I have a file tree structure in mind for how I
want to store all my photos. I know how to create a file structure in
Windows File Explorer. I did add a couple folder names, just to see how it
worked in the Mycloud software. It doesn’t seem to do what I want. I can
create the tree structure in File Explorer but when I then launch my
Mycloud dashboard and view the shares, all I see so far in the Dashboard,
under Shares, are the three generic public shares–music, videos, and
photos. Have I actually created the other files and folders I want to use,
or haven’t I?

Followup question: Once I have created the files and folders I want to use
to store the photos now on CD, on my hard drive, on my phone, etc., I know
how to drag/drop them from the device they’re on into the folder in the
Mycloud where I want to store them. So do I do that inside Windows File
Explorer using conventional file drag/drop techniques?

Final question: If I do actually move photos around from one device (say,
my hard drive) to the Mycloud, into the folder on Mycloud where I want them
to reside, just what is the purpose of the Dashboard? It doesn’t seem as
if I’m using it at all, to simply move or drag/drop photos onto the
Mycloud. Am I missing something here?

Thanks for all your help.

Tom

[Bennor]

First, if you have not already done so it helps to read through the My Cloud User Manual (http://support.wdc.com/product.aspx?ID=904) which answers many basic questions on how to use the My Cloud and its features/options.

Second, it helps for ease of use/access to “map” the My Cloud to one’s computer. There by making it easier to access the My Cloud using Windows File Explorer or Mac Finder.

http://support.wdc.com/knowledgebase/answer.aspx?ID=2676

http://support.wdc.com/knowledgebase/answer.aspx?ID=2686

One can copy/move/delete files to and from the My Cloud just like any other drive when using Windows File Explorer or Mac Finder.

[tomseeley]

Hey,

Thx again for helping me. Sorry to be such a dummy; esp since I actually
do have a PhD in Nuclear Engineering (seriously). I used to be better at
this stuff!

I realize now what “mapping” means. I had heard that term, but I wasn’t
sure what it meant. I know now that once I have things set up on the
MYCLOUD I can map parts of it to my computer to make it easier to get to
the parts of the cloud that I want to see. It seems like that’s a couple
steps down the road for me.

At the moment, I’m still not sure, even after having RTFM, if I should just
use File Explorer to set up the folder/file structure I want to use to
store all my photos, and then, once I’ve populated it from my collection of
old vacation CDs, etc., just create shares on the CLOUD to give family and
friends access to various folders and files but not everything.

Is that the right sequence? File Explorer first; drag/drop second; create
private and public shares third?

Thx again.

Tom

[Bennor]

You use the WD My Cloud Dashboard to create the top level Shares (or folders). Once you create a Share you can set the user permissions on that Share to restrict access. You can set media serving on that Share to enable or disable DLNA media serving. Once a Share has been created one can use Windows File Explorer or Mac Finder to create subfolders within that Share. All subfolders inherit the same permissions from the Share. One can use Windows File Explorer or Mac Finder to copy files/folders from one’s local computer hard drive to a My Cloud Share or to a subfolder within a Share.

[cpt_paranoia]

@tomseeley

Is that the right sequence?

No. You cannot create Shares from File Explorer, only subdirectories (folders) in Shares.

The correct sequence is:

1. Use the Dashboard to create any User accounts you think you will need. This will also create a private Share for each User (I think: if not, see 2).
2. Use the Dashboard to create any additional Shares that are not user-specific (e.g. that will be accessible to multiple Users.
3. Use the Dashboard to assign appropriate access rights for Users to whichever Shares you want them to be able to access, with whatever rights you want to give them.
4. Use File Explorer or Finder to create Mapped Network Drives for whichever Shares or folders in Shares you wish to use. Do this on each User’s PC/Mac, or PC/Mac user account (if your Users share a computer, and have different User accounts on that computer). When mapping in Windows, ensure that ALL network drives are mapped with the same User credentials for each User (their local user name and password for their MyCloud User account we created in 1, not their Windows credentials, and not their MyCloud.com remote access credentials). This includes any public-access Shares.

[tomseeley]

Thank you! This is what I needed to know

[tomseeley]

Thank you for the explicit help on the right sequence to do what I’m
confused about. I still have some questions.

1. With respect to your Step 1:

   a. Can I create a user acct now, for my wife, since I know she’ll
   need one, and then later come back and create more for our kids when I want
   them to be able to see our vacation photos? Or do I need to create all the
   User accts I’ll ever want, all at the same time, right up front?

   b. OR…what diff would it make whether I made our kids’ shares now
   or later? I guess I could make them all now, and just tell them all I’m
   doing that but that they don’t need to do anything about it till later when
   I’ve put some photos in their Shares for them to view. Right?

2. With respect to your Step 2:

   a. Such Shares would be more Public Shares? Created in the Dashboard
   but with no specific user access parameters associated with them?

3. With respect to your Step 4:

   a. I’m still not sure why I *need *to map any Share to anyone’s
   computer. I understand, I think, that doing that makes it more like a
   one-step process to access that Share from a computer, since the computer
   now recognizes the Share as another lettered hard drive. But if I skipped
   that step, aren’t I still able to access the Share from my computer, just
   with a couple extra steps (clicks)?

Sorry to be so slow. I think part of my problem is that linguistically I’m
a literalist. I take words so literally that sometimes I’m my own worst
enemy! For example, in your #4, you said, and I quote to illustrate my
problem with being literal, “…do this on each user’s PC…” To me,
taking “each user’s PC” literally means I have to go to where my daughter
lives and do this step on her PC in her house! Obviously you don’t mean
that, but that’s the kind of problem I’m having here.

Sorry…I said that already, didn’t I?

[cpt_paranoia]

You can create Users at any time.

You can remove Users at any time.

You can create Shares at any time.

You can remove Shares at any time.

But, if you are setting your MyCloud up for the first time, and have a list of Users and Shares you know you want to set up to start with, my sequence is useful. The important thing to note is that Shares (the top-level of folder hierarchy) can only be created via the Dashboard.

Mapping a Share as a network drive means that it will appear just like any other named drive letter (C:, D:, E:, etc). This means that it will behave transparently to any programs running on your computer, and can be used by them just like the internal HDD, or a USB HDD attached to the computer. This is much more useful than limiting yourself to just accessing the drive using File Manager.

My Step 4 assumed your PCs would all be accessing the MyCloud locally (i.e. within your house, connected to the MyCloud via your internal local network router.switch).

You cannot map network drives on a PC in a remote location, the MyCloud no longer supports that function. So you cannot map network shares on your daughter’s PC at her home.

Remote access can only be performed using the MyCloud apps for mobile devices/PC/Mac, or using the MyCloud.com internet access portal.

[tomseeley]

Hi. I’m the Mycloud dummy you helped a few days ago. I’m
baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaackkkkkkkkk…

Last week, when you told me this, I did what you said above, to get to the
file structure by clicking Network,etc and then clicking on Mycloud under
computers. It worked fine.

Just now, though, when I clicked on Network, all I got after Windows built
the list of devices to be shown under Computers, was my desktop. It did
not show the Mycloud under computers at all. It does show it under Media
Devices and Storage. any thoughts why the process you told me to use
doesn’t work today like it did a week ago?

[no_step]

Isn’t that aggravating? My devices would do the same thing, I came up with a fix that should work. It’s not hard, but takes a bit of time.

The problem is almost certainly with netbios in Windows. You can verify this by opening a command prompt and typing in 'Net View". If you get an error message then netbios is borked.

Open file manager and double click the My Cloud icon in Storage, this will open the admin page on the device. Go to settings, and network. Make note of the value of IPv4 IP Address, you’ll need that later. Scroll down and look for Windows Services. Make sure that Workgroup is set as WORKGROUP (all caps!). Right below it it should have a setting for Local Master Browser, make sure it’s ON. If you’re using windows 10 then SMB should be set for SMB 3.

I’m unsure if the My Cloud restarts services on a settings change, so to be sure, go to settings, Utilities, and look for the button to reboot the system.

(A couple of notes for others who may try this - if you have more than one My Cloud device, Local Master Browser should be set ON for only one device, others must be OFF. If you have an older unit, there may not be a setting for Local Master Browser. The only workaround is to SSH to the device and edit /etc/samba/smb.com and add/modify the following lines:

[global]
name resolve order = wins lmhosts hosts bcast
wins support = yes
local master = yes
os level = 65
preferred master = yes
domain master = yes

Only try this if you’re comfortable in Linux. I’m sure it voids your warranty, risks bricking the device, etc)

Next, go to each windows computer in the workgroup. From a command line type ‘net config workstation’. Make sure the Workstation Domain is ‘WORKGROUP’. From that same window, type regedit. Look for HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\ Services\Browser\Parameters in the tree. With Parameters highlighted in the tree, right click and New, String Value with a name of ‘IsDomainMaster’ and a value of ‘False’. Close regedit and command window.

Open Network and Sharing Center in control panel, click change adapter settings, right click on whichever you use ( Ethernet or WiFi), and select Properties. Click on Internet Protocol Version 4, and click on the Properties button. Click on Advanced, and then the WINS tab. Click Add to add a WINS server address. Put in the IP of the MyCloud that you noted earlier, and hit Add. NetBIOS should be set for Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP.

Reboot the machine, and repeat the procedure for all other windows machines on the network.

You can test by opening file manger and looking in Network. The list of computers and devices should appear instantly. You shouldn’t ever see that problem again.

[mike27oct]

Tom,

This is not rocket science nor any other science. One does need to understand using Windows’ file management principles and procedures…

I think the reason you did not see your My Cloud under File Explorer’s Network section (and this is where you are supposed to find it), although it can show up under “this PC” as well. Every once in a while Windows can appear to “loose” the folders in Network section. They are not really lost, the Network section of File Explorer just needs to be Refreshed. (I need to do this frequently on a Win 10 and Win 7 PC) The refresh button is either a double or curved arrow – depending upon Windows version. To refresh screen, highlight Network, look in upper right area of window. Notice the arrows, hover cursor over arrow and it will display Refresh Network. OK this what you want, so click on that button and File Explorer will refresh and display all of Network contents.

For populating media files in My Cloud, I keep all my media files in Public’s Shared folders. I do not like drag n drop; too easy to make a slip up. I use COPY and PASTE commands. Example, I have a media folder on the PC or drive attached to it. Say I want to copy all my music folders to the MC. I click on the folder I want to COPY, and copy it, then go into Shared Music of MC, and click where I want the music folder(s) placed e.g. Shared Music, and then use the PASTE command. Same procedure is used for Pictures and Video files. That’s all there is to it.

[tomseeley]

no-step, Thx for the advice but it might as well be in Swahili for me. One word I know I recognized was regedit and I won’t go near that. Sorry, but I’ll have to try something else. What you suggested may well be the solution but not for me.

[tomseeley]

mike,

I should have said in my orig msg about this that I had already done that. No help. It goes through its process; the green progress bar moves to the right. And when it’s all done, nothing but my PC shows up. I know that the green progress bar had progressed left to right by itself last week, the last time I tried this, and it does not. I guess I’m screwed. Lucky for me I saved all the receipts from Best Buy when I bought this thing I’ll keep fiddling with it, but if I can’t even program it at all much less load photos on it, then to hell with it.

[tomseeley]

no-step and mike:

Ain’t technology grand! I used to be so much better than this! I just signed off, logged back on, and checked my internet connections. NOTE: I have not, to my knowledge, changed those in a long time! However, I noted that my Ethernet connection was up and working but my wifi connection to my computer was not. So I connected that, by RE-checking “connect AUTOMATICALLY” (EMPHASIS MINE). Sure enough, when I then activated File Explorer and clicked on Network, it automatically found my Mycloud…so much for having checked “connect automatically”!