How to create a Shared Folder between two Local User in Linux?

This article shows how to set-up a shared folder between two local users in Linux. The shared directory/folder will be accessible to both the users, they will be able to read/write each other's file.

Let us create shared directory /home/shareFolder for user Bob and Alice and add them to a common group named projectA.

Note: You can create the uses Bob and Alice using following commands:

$ sudo useradd Bob
$ sudo passwd Bob
$ sudo useradd Alice
$ sudo passwd Alice

1. So, start by creating common group using groupadd command.

   $ sudo groupadd projectA

   
2. Now, create shared directory and change group for it using chgrp command.

   $ sudo mkdir /home/sharedFolder/
   $ sudo chgrp projectA /home/sharedFolder

   
3. After this we need to change appropriate permissions for the shared directory using chmod command.

   $ sudo chmod 770 /home/sharedFolder/

   Here 770 permission means:

   7 – owner has rwx permissions.
   7 – directory groups have rwx permissions.
   0 – others have no permissions.

   
4. We also need to set the SGID(Set-Group-ID) bit for the sharedFolder directory, now all newly created subdirectories/files under sharedFolder will inherit sharedFolder permissions.

   $ sudo chmod +s /home/sharedFolder 

   
5. Finally we add users to the common group with whom to share the folder

   $ sudo usermod -a -G projectA Bob
   $ sudo usermod -a -G projectA Alice

   

Now /home/sharedFolder is accessible to both the user Bob and Alice. But others can't access this directory. This directory will be accessible to only members of projectA group.