Do you have an old laptop gathering dust in a closet? Most of us do. Instead of throwing it away, you can give it a second life. This simple tech tutorial guide will show you how to turn that old computer into a private home server. You do not need to buy expensive gear. You do not need to be a software expert either. We will do this using tools already built into your computer.
Before we begin, you might want to check out our home technology guide for more basic computer setups.
Why You Need a Home Server
A home server is like your own private cloud. You can store photos, videos, and music on it. Then, any device in your house can open those files. It is perfect for backing up important documents.
Using an old laptop is actually better than buying a new server. Laptops have a built-in battery backup. If your power goes out, the laptop stays on. They also use very little electricity compared to big desktop PCs.
You can save a lot of money this way. Services like Google Drive or Dropbox charge you every month. With this setup, you pay nothing. You own your data, and it stays inside your home.
Prepare Your Laptop for Server Duty
First, we need to clean up the laptop. Plug it into your wall outlet. It needs to stay plugged in all the time. Next, connect it to your router with an ethernet cable if you can. A wired connection is much faster than Wi-Fi.
If your connection acts up during this setup, you can read our guide on how to Fix Slow Internet: Easy Router Restart Guide to get back on track.
Now, open your laptop power settings. We must stop the laptop from going to sleep when you close the lid. In Windows, go to the Control Panel. Search for power options. Find the setting that says "Choose what closing the lid does". Change this to "Do nothing" for both battery and plugged-in states.
This step is very important. If the laptop sleeps, your server stops working. Now you can close the lid and tuck the laptop away on a shelf. Just make sure it has room to breathe so it does not get too hot.
How to Share a Folder on Windows
Now we will set up the actual file sharing. Create a new folder on your desktop. Name it something easy like HomeShare. Right-click on this folder and select properties.
Click on the sharing tab at the top. Next, click the share button. A new window will pop up. Select "Everyone" from the drop-down list and click add. This lets anyone on your home network access the folder.
Under the permission level column, change "Read" to "Read/Write". This allows you to add files from other computers, not just view them. Click share at the bottom, then click done.
We also need to make sure your network profile is set to private. If it is public, Windows will block other devices from connecting. Click your network icon near the clock. Check your connection properties and set it to private network.
Find Your Server IP Address
To connect from other devices, you need the server address. This is a set of numbers called an IP address. Let us find it quickly.
Press the Windows key and type cmd to open the command prompt. Type "ipconfig" and press enter. Look for a line that says IPv4 Address. It will look like 192.168.1.50. Write this number down.
I recommend setting up a static IP. This means the number will never change. You can do this in your router settings. If you do not, your router might give the laptop a new number later. That would break your connection.
Connect From Your Other Devices
Now the fun part begins. You can connect to your new server from any computer in your house. Let us try it on a second Windows computer.
Open File Explorer on your main computer. Click the address bar at the top. Type two backslashes followed by your server IP address. It should look like this: \\192.168.1.50.
Press enter. You will see your shared folder pop up. You can drag and drop files right into it. It works just like a regular folder on your computer.
You can also connect with a Mac. Open Finder and press Command + K. Type "smb://" followed by your server IP address. Click connect, and your shared folder will open up.
Quick Tips for Your Home Server
To make sure your new server runs great, keep these three quick tips in mind:
- Keep it clean: Blow the dust out of the laptop vents once a year. Dust makes the fans run loud and slows down the computer.
- Turn off automatic updates: You do not want your server restarting in the middle of a big file transfer. Set updates to happen late at night.
- Use a cloud backup: Even though this is your private cloud, hard drives can still fail. Keep a copy of your most important files on a USB drive.
That is all there is to it. You now have a working home server without spending a single penny. What will you store on your new server first?
