How to make Invisible Path from any User

Windows Access Rights Management
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parkaos
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How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by parkaos »

Hello, I work at an IT company my manager assigned me to do this task.

The architecture is described as follows.

We have 3 Vmware machines running different virtual machines for internal lab and non-lab use, all managed by a Vcenter.
Currently the virtual machines are configured to be backed up on two corporate QNAPs.

Our need for internal security policy reasons in addition to hiding these backup folders, which is already done via the option: Hide network drive.

is to make these paths inaccessible by anyone even from the admin, i.e. even knowing the exact path, it should not appear as available by running a command from windows.

E.g., if I access the network devices, obviously I don't see the backup folders because they have been nassed.
But if I go to the windows search bar "\addres-ip\name-folder" the hidden path appears and requires credentials for access, as it should.
We would like there to be no such eventuality either, i.e., that the backup folders be exclusively accessible and visible by the Vcenter in NFS and by no other user or service/protocol including admin user except precisely from the Qnap control panel itself that holds that folder.

Is there any way to make a network path for a shared folder completely invisible other than the "simple" Hide network drive?
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dolbyman
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by dolbyman »

-Use ABSE to not show any SMB shares to non access granted users
-Disable the SMB service
parkaos
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by parkaos »

Hi I tried disabling SMB by unchecking WS-discovery.

But going to enter the path manually on the specific folder, it is still visible from every pc prsent on the network.

I would like to know if there is a possibility somehow to totally exclude certain folders from visible network paths even knowing the specific path. While for other folders the search service should remain active.
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dolbyman
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by dolbyman »

ws-discovery ? .. no if you want to disable SMB you uncheck "Enable file service for Microsoft networking"

You said you only wanted the NAS to be usable via NFS, that's what that does, specific folder visibility is not in that scope
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OneCD
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by OneCD »

parkaos wrote: Wed May 18, 2022 10:20 pm is to make these paths inaccessible by anyone even from the admin, i.e. even knowing the exact path, it should not appear as available by running a command from windows.
I won't comment on the file-sharing aspect of your question as @dolbyman already has that handled.

However, it should be noted you won't be able to prevent the NAS admin from accessing the files "directly" on the NAS. If the admin couldn't access all user files, then they wouldn't be the admin. ;)

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parkaos
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by parkaos »

Hi, I had already tried disabling microsoft network service by unchecking it, but by doing so I no longer have access to all folders on the nas. While my need would be to have the service enabled for some shared folders, while disabled for virtual machine backup folders. I don't know if it is possible to do this on a per-folder basis and not for the whole NAS.

So I had tried disabling ws-discovery mistakenly thinking that this would make my request possible.

Thanks for the support
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dolbyman
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by dolbyman »

you cannot disable SMB selectively..no

But as said, if you want to hide SMB shares for users without access rights to them, use ABSE
Poppy
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Re: How to make Invisible Path from any User

Post by Poppy »

Have you considered enabling an iSCSI area on the QNAP and mounting that in the vCenter?
You should be able to limit the access to the iSCSI area to the vCenter (and the QNAP Admin)
All normal user networking can then just carry on regardless without you needing to edit it at all.
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