How do you connect to Windows 11 PCs for network file sharing?

Question

How do you connect to Windows 11 PCs for network file sharing?

Flashy-Shinobi 10

I have turned on all network file sharing settings on both PCs. In the network section of the file explorer they are both visible to each other. When I double-click on the other PC in the file explorer I am prompted to input my network credentials. In this section I have tried using, my Microsoft account email, the name of my user folder, and MicrosoftAccount\my@email. For the password I have tried my Microsoft password, and my PIN. None of these have worked, it says that my username and password are incorrect. I then tried creating a local administrator account on each PC, but those usernames and passwords were rejected as well.

In short, I am asking if someone could provide a checklist of steps to take in order to connect two PCs that use the same Microsoft account for login together for file sharing. Thank you.

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Answer recommended by moderator

Mario Moreno Meza 5

This is a bug with the credential that I been seen for some time now, remote desktop is also affected, the tl;dr you need to get your credentials in the machine you want to access, to do this, just open a terminar or "Run" (Shortcut: Win + R) and run:

runas /u:MicrosoftAccount<YourAccountEmail> winver

It asks you password, put in your account password and then is going to open a window with your current version, and that's it, enjoy, your email/password should work to access files or remote into that machine.

Cheers.

Mark Lewis 0 Reputation points

2026-04-08T21:46:48.8433333+00:00

Genuinely, this is the only place I've seen this answer and it is the only thing that worked for me. I use the same MS Account on two PC's in my LAN and could not access one from the other until I did the runas trick you described. Works flawlessly since.

Thank you for taking the time to post this here.
ATLBrysco 0 Reputation points

2026-05-29T13:41:40.1766667+00:00

YOU Sir, are a Godsend - Thanks so very much for this! I had two Win11Pro machines that had some network shares that had to be rebuilt; while the rebuild went fine, I have spent the last four hours pulling my hair out trying to get the shares working again.

Please - be fruitful and multiply! We need more helpful users like you! 😁

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Mark Lewis 0 Reputation points

2026-04-08T21:46:48.8433333+00:00

Genuinely, this is the only place I've seen this answer and it is the only thing that worked for me. I use the same MS Account on two PC's in my LAN and could not access one from the other until I did the runas trick you described. Works flawlessly since.

Thank you for taking the time to post this here.
ATLBrysco 0 Reputation points

2026-05-29T13:41:40.1766667+00:00

YOU Sir, are a Godsend - Thanks so very much for this! I had two Win11Pro machines that had some network shares that had to be rebuilt; while the rebuild went fine, I have spent the last four hours pulling my hair out trying to get the shares working again.

Please - be fruitful and multiply! We need more helpful users like you! 😁

Answer 1

Basically, I had the exact same problem.

I don't know if there are other solutions, but the way I got it to work was to create local users.

They don't need to be administrators, they can just be standard users.

But they must be local as far as I understand it. So when you create them you need to say you don't have their login details, and then choose the option to Add a user without a Microsoft account - then you just choose their names and passwords and they are purely local to the PC.

If the Admin users you created were local, then I think the step you might be missing is to make sure you 'give network access' to those users to the files/folders you want to share.

So I am just sharing one folder - so I enabled Sharing of the folder via it's Properties window, Sharing tab - then I right click on it in Explorer, choose 'Show more options', then select 'Give access to....' then choose Specific People, and type in the name of the local account you created.

You should then be able to get past the login screen from another computer using the new local user name and password. (I didn't have to 'qualify' the username with a domain name or a computer name - just use the simple user name and password)

Answer 2

Haien-L 7,675 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Dear Flashy-Shinobi

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A. I'm Haien from Microsoft Q&A.

May I ask if you have tried my suggestions for your case? I hope you can keep me updated on your issue in the future.

Your satisfaction is Microsoft's priority.

Warm regards

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Answer 3

Dear Flashy-Shinobi
Thanks for reaching out! Welcome to Microsoft Q&A. I'm Haien from Microsoft Q&A.  

I’m sorry to hear you’re hitting a wall with those “username and password are incorrect” errors when trying to connect your two Windows 11 PCs for file sharing. It’s great that both PCs are visible in File Explorer’s Network section, so we’re already partway there! Even when both PCs use the same Microsoft account, Windows 11's network sharing can be tricky due to security policies. The "username and password" prompt is a common hurdle, and the credentials you've tried often won't work. The key is to use the correct format and a specific password that the system is expecting.

From that situation, I highly recommend you try these workarounds:

Solution 1: Verify Basic Network Settings

On both PCs, go to Settings > Network & internet > Advanced network settings > Advanced sharing settings.
- Under your current network profile (e.g., Private network), ensure Network discovery and File and printer sharing are turned on.
  - For the "Public folder sharing" section, turn on "Turn on Public folder sharing."
    - For the "Password protected sharing" section, turn on "Turn on password protected sharing" (this is the default and most secure setting).

Solution 2: Set Up Folder Sharing

Right-click the folder you want to share.
Go to Properties > Sharing tab > Advanced Sharing > Check the box for "Share this folder" > Click Permissions and ensure "Full Control" is enabled for "Everyone" (or a specific user).

For additional information for similar topic about file sharing, please visit this article to know more: File sharing over a network in Windows - Microsoft Support

If you've already tried these steps and are still encountering issues, please reply to this thread with the requested details so we can investigate further and ensure your subscription is activated properly. Also, please keep me updated with anything new that you were try to each option.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".  Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread. 

We appreciate your patience and look forward to resolving this quickly for you.

Warm regards

Answer 4

Alvise C 56,036 Volunteer Moderator

hi flashy, welcome in community

follow carefully here

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/file-sharing-over-a-network-in-windows-b58704b2-f53a-4b82-7bc1-80f9994725bf

be sure that there isn't antivirus or firewall different from windows defender, that can block the network sharing

also, the two network pc must be in the same local network and managed by the same router

let me know

Elvis

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How do you connect to Windows 11 PCs for network file sharing?

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