Opening shared files as a client

After a file is opened by a host and shared via FileMaker Networking, you can access it as a client.

To open a shared file as a client:

  1. Choose File menu > Hosts > Show Hosts.

    Or choose File menu > Hosts, and choose a favorite host in the menu.

    In the Hosts dialog box, if no hosts are displayed, click the arrow (Windows) or Show (macOS) next to FileMaker Cloud Teams (FileMaker Cloud only), Favorites, or Local.

    To find a host, type a few characters of the host name in the hosts search box, or scroll.

  2. To see the files available from a host, click the host name.

    Files appear at the right of the dialog box.

    To find a file, type a few characters of the filename in the files search box, or scroll.

  3. To open a file, select the filename and click OK.

    FileMaker Pro only: Enter an account name and password if asked. If you have an Apple ID account or an account stored by an OAuth identity provider or an AD FS server, choose the provider, then enter your account credentials on the provider's webpage. See Opening files protected with passwords (FileMaker Pro only).

To open an available file hosted by FileMaker Cloud (FileMaker Pro only):

  1. If you're not already signed in with a Claris ID or external identity provider (IdP) account, choose File menu > Sign In to Claris ID.

    See About Claris ID and external IdP accounts (FileMaker Pro only).

  2. Choose File menu > My Apps > Show My Apps.

    Or choose File menu > My Apps, and choose a file in the menu.

    The files that are available to you are shown under the team name. To find a file, type a few characters of the filename in the files search box, or scroll. If an expected file is not available to you, contact your team manager.

  3. To open a file, double-click the filename.

To open a shared file as a client using a network file path:

  1. Choose File menu > Hosts > Show Hosts.

  2. In the Hosts dialog box, click Network file path button.

  3. For Network File Path, enter the address and filename of the shared file in this format:

    fmnet:/address/filename

    For example, address can be:

    • a DNS name: fmnet:/host.domain.com/My Addresses

    • an IPv4 address: fmnet:/192.168.10.0/My Addresses

    • an IPv6 address: fmnet:/[2001:0DB8:85A3:08D3:1319:8A2E:0370:7334]/My Addresses

    Note that fmnet:/ uses a single slash.

To add or edit a host:

  1. Choose File menu > Hosts > Show Hosts.

  2. Do one of these:

    • To add a favorite host that's not in the local hosts list, click Add host button next to the hosts search box.

    • To edit a favorite host, double-click the host name in the favorite hosts list. (Or right-click the host name, and choose Edit Favorite.)

  3. In the dialog box that appears, for Host's Internet Address, enter the host's domain name or IP address.

    • Enter domain names using the format host.domain.com

    • Enter IP addresses using one of the following formats:
      IPv4: 192.168.10.0
      IPv6: [2001:0DB8:85A3:08D3:1319:8A2E:0370:7334]

  4. (optional) For Favorite Host's Name, type a name for the host.

    If you don't enter a name, only the host's internet address is displayed in the Hosts dialog box.

Notes 

  • To add a local host as a favorite or remove a favorite host, see Working with favorite files and hosts.

  • To change how files are displayed in the Hosts dialog box or My Apps window, click List button or Tiles button.

  • When a file you are opening is hosted, you may see a lock icon that indicates the security level of the connection to the host. See About the security lock icons.

  • When opening a shared file that uses Apple ID or an OAuth identity provider for authentication, use the host's fully qualified domain name (for example, host.domain.com).

  • You can choose a custom icon to represent a file. See Setting file options.

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