How to connect computer to computer windows 10

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Sometimes computers connecting is necessary for you since you may need to share files from one computer to another. But some of you don’t know how to connect two computers together in Windows 10 for file sharing? Right now, you can get 2 common ways from this post from MiniTool.

If your friend has some resources that you are interested in, you may choose to transfer them from the computer to your computer. In your office, sometimes you also need to share files and other resources with another PC.

Well then, how can you share data between two computers? The premise is connecting to computers, that is, you need to connect these two computers together. In the following part, we will show you how to do computers connecting.

How to Connect Two Computers Windows 10

The following are 2 common methods to connect two computers including using LAN cable and setting up a wireless ad hoc network. Now, let’s see some details.

How to Connect Two Computers Using LAN Cable in Windows 10

Prepare an Ethernet cable and then follow these instructions now to finish settings:

Step 1: Navigate to Control Panel > Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Center.

Step 2: Click Change adapter settings and you can see some types of connection options.

Step 3: Choose a connection for your LAN. Generally, the connection is called Ethernet with the description network cable unplugged.

Step 4: Right-click it and choose Properties.

Step 5: In the Networking tab, choose Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click Properties.

Step 6: In the pop-up window, set the IP address and subnet masks of the first computer to:

• IP – 192.168.0.1
• Subnet Mask – 225.225.225.0

Also, do the same thing for the second computer and set the IP address and subnet masks to:

• IP – 192.168.0.2
• Subnet Mask – 225.225.225.0

Step 7: Connect the crossover cable to the two computers’ network ports.

Step 8: Right-click on This PC to choose Properties and go to Change settings > Change and you can get a window with the name of the workgroup. By default, the workgroup name will be WORKGROUP.

Step 9: Right-click the drive that you want to share, go to Give access to > Advanced Sharing.

Step 10: In the Sharing tab, click Advanced Sharing.

Step 11: Check the box of Share this folder and click Apply.

To share files, you need to do some other things:

Step 1: Right-click the specific folder and choose Give access to > Specific people.

Step 2: Choose Everyone to share.

Step 3: Go to the second computer’s Network Panel and you can find the first PC is ADMIN-HP. Just double-click it to show all the shared files and you can move the desired content by copy & paste.

How to Connect Two Computers Wirelessly

If two computers have wireless cards, you can use the cards to make a wireless connection between these two computers. How to network computers wirelessly? Just follow these steps below:

Step 1: Go to Control Panel > Network and Sharing Center.

Step 2: Click the Setup a new connection or network link.

Step 3: Choose Set up a wireless ad hoc (computer-to-computer) network from the new window.

Step 4: You need to name the network, choose a security type and set a security key. It is recommended to choose Save this network since it may disappear if you disconnect the ad hoc network.

Step 5: Then, go to the list of wireless networks and you can see the newly created one. If you connect it, you can see the information Waiting for users next to the network name. Just connect another computer to the network.

Now, you can share data between the computers. If your PC is running Windows 10, another computer is running Windows 7 or higher, the HomeGroup feature is helpful for you to share music, pictures, videos, documents, and printers easily.

Step 1: Input HomeGroup to the search box and click the result.

Step 2: Click Create a homegroup.

Step 3: Choose what to share.

Step 4: After a while, a homegroup password is given to you. Click Finish.

Then, you need to let another computer join the homegroup. Do the same thing as shown above, but to join the existing homegroup instead of creating a new one. Go to Windows Explorer, click HomeGroup and shared folders will appear there.

Bottom Line

Here is all the information on how to connect 2 computers for file sharing. Which one to choose — use an Ethernet cable or set up a wireless ad hoc network, it’s up to you.

With many advancements in technology, it is getting more leisurely day by day to connect two devices and perform file sharing. If you intend to connect two computers running on Windows operating system to transfer files, you can easily do that. You can make use of one of the native features of Windows 10, which lets two computers connect over Wi-Fi and share files. This not only makes file transfer simple but also very fast. This is a step forward from conventional modes of file transfer between two computers. It not just saves time but also utilizes lesser resources.

In this article, we look at the method to connect two computers using a wireless network and transfer files from one computer to another.

But before we proceed with the process, we would like you to look at the advantages of connecting two computers over WiFi to share files.

Advantages of Connecting two Windows PC over WiFi to Transfer Files

Speedy Transfer of Data

When two computers establish a connection over WiFi, the data transfer speed inherently becomes faster. Compared to conventional modes of data transfer, through a USB data device, the speed of transfer is multiple times more quickly. Moreover, the action of copying data to the external device and then pasting it on the other device is entirely redundant. All these actions are eliminated with the help of a wireless connection between two computers.

No Need of External Data Drives

To transfer data from one PC to another, you no longer need an external data drive, such as a USB Flash Drive or a USB Hard Drive. All you need is to establish a WiFi connection between two Windows PCs.

Wireless Transfer is Secure

File Transfer through the WiFi network is highly secure. The data goes where it is meant to go. No one can breach the connection. Moreover, this eliminates the probability of the data or your PC getting infected by any virus or malware present in external flash drives or hard drives.

Method to Connect Two Computers using WiFi for File Transfer

Now that you know how good a WiFi network connection between two Windows PCs, lets us know about the method you can use to establish a connection. The primary approach that you can use is the native feature of Windows 10 called Nearby Sharing. Let us check it out.

Connect Windows Computers through Nearby Sharing

One of the most impressive features of Windows to connect computers using a WiFi network is the Nearby Sharing feature. It uses wireless communication to establish a connection between two Windows 10 devices. Just make sure that both the computers run on Windows 10 operating system. Once the connection has been made, you can very quickly transfer files and more between two PCs.

Note: It is advised to keep both the PCs that you want to share files connected to the same local network. The local network could be the same WiFi network connection or same Ethernet connection.

Following are the settings you must carry out on both the Windows computers you want to connect:

Step 1: Press the Win + I keys on the keyboard simultaneously. As the Settings app opens, select the option that says System.

Step 2: A new Settings window will open with a bunch of options. Here, navigate to the panel available on the left side and click on the Shared experiences option. Next, navigate to the panel on the right side of the window and go to the Nearby sharing section. Here, you will find a toggle switch. Click on it to turn Nearby sharing on.

Step 3: Scroll down a bit and click on the dropdown menu available below the “I can share or receive content from” section. From the menu, make sure to select the option that says Everyone nearby.

Step 4: Set the folder where you wish the shared content or files to be stored by clicking on the Change button.

Step 5: Now, scroll down on the same window to navigate the Share across devices section. Click on the toggle switch below this section to turn it On, then click on the dropdown menu and make sure to select the Everyone nearby option.

That is it—this way, you have set up Nearby sharing to connect to other Windows 10 PCs in the vicinity. Once you have made the same changes in the Settings menu of both the PCs you want to connect, it’s time to transfer files between them.

How to Share Files Between Computers using Nearby Sharing

Unlike any other file sharing feature or application that you may have come across in the past, this one is quite simple. We find out in the steps below:

Step 1: Open File Explorer on the Windows 10 PC from which you need to share file(s). In the File Explorer, navigate to the folder containing the file(s) to share. Now, you can select a single file or multiple files in a folder to share at once. After making the selection of the files, you want to share, make a right-click. A context menu will open. Here, click on the Share option.

Step 2: This will open a new Sharing dialog box with a couple of sharing options. Among these options, you will be able to locate the icon with the other computer’s name on which you enabled Nearby sharing. Click on it.

Note: You will only see other computers in the sharing menu if you have enabled Nearby sharing on them.

Once you have selected the Windows 10 PC on which you want to transfer files, you will get a prompt on the other PC. The prompt will be a notification about the file transfer. Here, you get three options: Decline, Save, and Save & View. You can select any of the options according to your preference.

Now, to access the file(s) that you transferred, you will need to go to the folder that you set while setting up Nearby sharing on the PC.

Now that you know how to connect two computers using WiFi, you can transfer all the files you want to share to and fro the computers. The only requirement would be that the Nearby sharing must be enabled on both the Windows 10 PCs.

How to Quickly Enable/Disable Nearby Sharing in Windows 10

If you must, you can also disable Nearby sharing on a Windows 10 computer. The process is quite simple and involves only a couple of steps. Of course, you can use the Settings app for the same, but the process is quite lengthy. Here, we tell you about a quick way to disable or enable Nearby sharing.

Open the Action Center interface on your PC. To do so, you will need to press the Win + A keys together. The Action Center interface will open on the right side of the screen.

Whenever you need to enable or disable Nearby sharing, click on the respective button as shown in the screenshot below.

When the button is highlighted, it means that the Nearby sharing is enabled. When it’s not highlighted, Nearby sharing is disabled.

Connect Two Computers Using WiFi through Third-Party Software

Although the only method I would prefer to connect two computers is by using the Nearby Sharing method, I would like to mention one alternate method that works fine.

You can make use of third-party file transfer software to connect two computers and transfer files.

One of the best options available out there is the SHAREit app. It makes use of WiFi to establish a connection between two computers. Once the connection has been made, you can send files over Wi-Fi between two computers.

The best part of using SHAREit is that you can use it to transfer files no just between two computers but across Android mobile phones, tablets, iOS phones, MAC computers, and more.

Begin with downloading the SHAREit software on both the PC among which you want to make a connection.

You can download SHAREit for Windows 10 from here.

After the download, launch SHAREit on both PCs.

In the SHAREit menu, click on the option that says Connect to PC.

The other PC will show up on the SHAREit interface, just like in the screenshot provided below. Click on it.

You will get a prompt on the other PC to accept the connection. Select the Accept option.

When both the computers are connected through a wireless network, a new interface will open using which you can transfer files from one PC to another.

All you need to do is drag and drop the files you want to transfer or use the file explorer to select the files you have to share.

SHAREit also gives you the option to change the folder where you would want to save the files that are being transferred. This option is similar to that of Nearby sharing and can be accessed from the SHAREit menu. In the SHAREit menu, click on the Settings option. On the Settings page, you will see many options, among which you will find the option to change the transferred file storage location.

One of the SHAREit menu options that I liked is the option to view the files received on a PC through SHAREit instantly. Go to the SHAREit menu and click on the option that says File Received. You will be able to access all the files received through SHAREit instantly.

Wrapping It Up

The past times to connect two computers using WiFi or other means used to be too time-taking and redundant. All thanks go to Microsoft for introducing the Nearby Sharing option in Windows 10, using which we can now share files between two computers almost instantly and that too without the use of an external device.

Recommended for You:

How to Share Internet From Laptop to Mobile via WiFi in Windows 7
How to Transfer Files Between Two Laptops Using WiFi in Windows 10
How To Share WiFi Over Ethernet on Windows 10

Connection and transfer of data are some of the invaluable uses of a computer. A lot of technology has arisen from this dire need. Between computers, one effective method is via the use of Ethernet or LAN cables. Here we walk you through all the steps to establish a LAN cable connection between two Windows 10 PCs for file-sharing or data transfer.

Advantages of LAN Cable Connection

One of the main advantages with connecting two Windows 10 laptops or computers is that it provides a medium to share files when you don’t have access to a wireless network.

If you do not trust the available Wi-Fi network, then you can make use of a LAN cable to connect the Windows 10 PCs and share files between them. The process is simple, and you only need to connect both the PCs with LAN cable and tweak a few network settings. It is a nice way to share files locally.

Choosing Between Straight or Crossover Cables

To know which cables will get the work done, you should first determine which devices you want to connect: are they the same kind of devices (two computers, for example) or different kinds of devices (a computer to a network switch or Ethernet hub, for example).

When two like systems share files, one outputs the data while the other receives it as input. Intentionally crossed wiring in the crossover cable connects the transmit signals at one end to the receiver signals at the other end. This makes crossover cables more ideal for an Ethernet connection between similar systems, like two computers.

With a crossover cable in hand, connect both the PCs. Once done, follow the steps below.

1. Go to “Control Panel -> Network and Internet -> Network and Sharing Center -> Change Adapter Settings.”

2. Click on “Change Adapter Settings.” This will reveal different connections. Select the appropriate connection for your LAN. Usually, but not necessarily, the connection will be called Ethernet.

3. Right-click on the connection and select “Properties.” The local area’s connection properties window will appear.

4. Under the network tab, select “Internet protocol version 4 (TCP/IPv4),” then click on “Properties.”

In the Properties menu, set the IP address and subnet masks of the first computer to:

• IP – 192.168.0.1
• Subnet Mask – 225.225.225.0

Repeat all the above steps for the second computer and set the IP address and subnet Mask as follows:

• IP – 192.168.0.2
• Subnet Mask – 225.225.225.0

Note: if you want the local network and Internet to work simultaneously, then ensure that under Adapter Settings you have de-selected IP Ver 6 for all devices. Also reset the IP Address to “discover automatically.”

5. After assigning the IP addresses, you need to head back to Network and Sharing Center and click on the “Change advanced sharing settings” option.

6. In the advanced sharing settings menu, you need to enable the “Turn on network discovery” and “Turn on automatic setup of network-connected devices” options.

You can also tick the File and printer sharing option. This would allow the other Windows 10 PC to access the files and printers shared on the network.

7. Right-click on “This PC” and choose “Properties.” Click on “Change settings -> Change.” This reveals a window with the name of the workgroup. The value for the workgroup name should be the same for both PCs. By default, the workgroup name will be WORKGROUP, but you can change it to any name you like.

8. Right-click on the drive you want to share. Scroll to the “Give access to” option and click “Advanced Sharing.” Under the sharing tab, click the “Advanced Sharing” button.

This reveals the advanced sharing window. Check the “Share this folder” checkbox and click “Apply -> OK.”

At this stage, you will have successfully connected the two Windows 10 PCs to share your drives between them.

Transferring Files

You can now transfer specific folders or files between the two connected Windows 10 PCs. To share specific folders or files from Computer A (ADMIN-HP) with Computer B, follow the steps below:

1. Right-click the desired folder or file in Computer A. Scroll to the “Give access to” option and click “Specific People.”

2. In the newly opened Network Access windows, select “Everyone” from the drop-down menu. Next, click “Add” and click “Share.”

3. Similarly on Computer B, you need to open This PC and click on the Network option in the left pane. Here you will see the names of connected computers, part of the network. In this case, Computer A is ADMIN-HP. Double-click on it and all files shared will be displayed. At this stage, you can use the normal copy and paste to move the desired content.

4. If you wish to copy files from Computer B to Computer A, you have to perform the same steps, but this time the steps previously performed on Computer A needs to be performed on Computer B and vice versa.

Wrapping Up

The above method will allow you to connect two Windows 10 PCs with a LAN cable to transfer files. For more sharing options, learn how to share files between Android and Windows 10 on your network.

Although most homes and businesses have some sort of network switching and wireless equipment to connect multiple Windows 10 computers together, there are still scenarios when you may need to connect two devices directly using an Ethernet cable.

For example, when you have to transfer files from an old to a new computer, or you want to connect to a file server (such as TrueNAS or unRAID) using a 10 Gigabit Ethernet connection directly, when you do not have a 10 Gigabit switch in the network. 

Whatever the reason it might be, you can configure Windows 10 to communicate with another computer without the need of a switch or Wi-Fi connection.

In this guide, you will learn two methods to connect two devices and share data using one Ethernet cable on Windows 10.

• How to connect two devices using Ethernet cable with network configuration
• How to connect two devices using Ethernet cable without network configuration

How to connect two devices using Ethernet cable with network configuration

If you need to transfer files between computers without the use of a switch, you will need to connect both devices using a straight through or crossover cable. 

The straight through cable is the conventional Ethernet cable that has the same wire color alignment on each end. On the other hand, the crossover cable has different wire alignment of colors on each end. 

On most modern computers using a Gigabit Ethernet network adapter, the system will sense and switch orientation automatically to allow communication without a switch in the middle, but some computers (especially those with an older card) will still need a crossover cable. 

After connecting both devices with an Ethernet cable, you need to configure the network settings to connect both devices running Windows 10.

On the first computer, use these steps:

1. Open Control Panel.

2. Click on Network and Internet.

3. Click on Network and Share Center.

4. Click the Change adapter settings from the left navigation pane.

   

5. Right-click the network adapter and select the Properties option.

   

6. Select the Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) option.

7. Click the Properties button.

   

8. Select the Use this following IP address option.

   

9. In the IP address field specify an address for the device. For example, 192.168.7.25.

   Quick tip: If you are trying to connect to another computer with a direct cable connection using a second network adapter, make sure the IP address is on a different network. For example, if the network uses the 192.168.1.x network, then to make the connection work, use a different network, for example, 192.168.2.x.

10. In the Subnet mask field specify the subnet address for the network. For example, 255.255.255.0.

11. Click the OK button.

Once you complete the steps, you will need to configure the second device with a similar configuration to allow the communication.

In the second computer, use these steps:

1. Open Control Panel.

2. Click on Network and Internet.

3. Click on Network and Share Center.

4. Click the Change adapter settings from the left navigation pane.

   

5. Right-click the network adapter and select the Properties option.

   

6. Select the Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) option.

7. Click the Properties button.

   

8. Select the Use this following IP address option.

   

9. In the IP address field specify a unique IP address for the device that is in the same network as the first computer. For example, 192.168.7.24.

10. In the Subnet mask field specify the subnet address for the network. For example, 255.255.255.0.

11. Click the OK button.

After you complete the steps, you can share a folder or service that will be accessible from the other device. You can refer to steps belows to complete the task or you can use these instructions to share folder with another computer.

How to connect two devices using Ethernet cable without network configuration

While the proper method is to use a network configuration to connect two computers directly, Windows 10 can also automatically assign an IP address using the 169.254.x.x network range, which is known as the Automatic Private Internet Protocol Addressing (APIPA).

If you do not want to go through the process of configuring the network, you can connect both devices and let them configure themself automatically, then you only need to share the data or service you are intending to access from another computer. 

In the case that you are trying to transfer some files, you will need to share a folder to then access it from the other device.

On the first computer, use these steps: 

1. Open File Explorer.

2. Browse to the folder with the data you want to share.

3. Right-click the folder, select the Give access to submenu, and choose the Specific people option.

   

4. Use the drop-down menu and select the user or group with access to share folder.

5. Click the Add button.

   

6. Under the “Permission Level” section, select the Read/Write option.

7. Click the Share button.

After you complete the steps, the files will be accessible from the second computer.

On the second computer, use these steps:

1. Open File Explorer.

2. Click on Network from the left navigation pane.

3. Double-click the computer you are trying to access the files.

   

4. Sign-in using the user information you shared the folder on the first computer.

After you complete the steps, you can transfer the files to the new destination.