How to access external hard drive remotely

Editorial Team Jun 18, 2023

USB drives are commonly used by connecting the device directly to a computer’s USB port. This scenario only makes the drive available to the computer to which it is attached. It does not allow other users to access the external hard drive remotely.

This article demonstrates how to use a USB over Internet app to obtain the maximum value and utility from your USB devices from any network-connected location.

USB over Ethernet is a software solution that makes it possible to access a USB drive or other USB devices like dongles or scanners from any network-attached machine. It works by allowing an external hard drive attached to your computer’s USB interface to be shared remotely from any location. The device will function like it is physically connected to the remote machines.

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Here is how to access hard drive remotely:

1

Install USB Network Gate on the computer that will share the USB drive over a LAN or the Internet. Use the app’s interface to share the locally connected device.

2

Click the “Share” button to allow other users to access the hard drive remotely and modify the device’s settings if required.

connect external hard drive to remote desktop

3

Install the USB over Ethernet application on the computer that will access the hard drive remotely.

4

Navigate to the “Remote USB devices” tab. Select the device you want to connect to with the USB redirector app and click “Connect” before closing the window.

access external hard drive from remote desktop

5

The appearance of a remote USB drive on the list does not always indicate that it is fully connected to your machine. You may need to finalize the connection before you can remotely access the hard drive even if the drive has been shared and assigned to your computer. Choose the device from the list and select ‟Establish connection”. You may need to enter a password if the device is protected and then click ‟Connect”.

6

Once the connection is implemented the device will be recognized by your operating system in the same way it sees a locally attached USB drive.

All you need for remote access to a hard drive:

USB over Network app;
A USB drive to be shared with remote users;
A computer running the Windows, macOS or Linux operating system.

USB Network Gate can be run on Windows, Linux, macOS, and Android platforms. It offers cross-platform functionality so you can share devices among computers running different operating systems.

The benefits of USB Network Gate for connecting external hard drives remotely

✅ Reverse connections

USB Network Gate makes it possible to easily access hard drives that are plugged into computers to which the user connects via RDP.

✅ Advanced safety and security

USB Network Gate utilizes advanced security encryption protocols that prevent your transmitted data from being accessed by unauthorized users. Password protection is also available, meaning that only users with the password can access specific external drives remotely.

✅ Cross-platform hard drive redirection

USB Network Gate is compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac operating systems allowing users to easily share devices between different platforms. Regardless of whether they share the same operating system or not, any computer can be configured as a “server” or “client” machine.