You can connect a USB stick or USB hard drive to most routers. The memory is then available for all home network devices to access files stored there or to save them for other devices. To do this, you must first activate the SMB release in the router menu and, depending on the model, create a user account that is authorized for access.
File access on a Windows computer is particularly easy if you connect the USB storage device as a network drive. Then it appears like a local hard drive in Windows Explorer and you can open, edit and save the files as usual. However, the display in Explorer often causes problems: the USB storage device does not appear there and for this reason cannot be set up as a network drive.
The first hurdle is usually the SMB protocol (Server Message Block): Current computers and routers only support the SMBv2 and SMBv3 versions, which are classified as secure. With older devices, however, it can happen that the outdated SMBv1 is still used. You should therefore make sure that the computer and router are working with the same SMB version – preferably SMBv2 or SMBv3. Since Windows 10 version 1709, these versions have been used by default and the outdated SMBv1 is no longer installed at all or is automatically uninstalled after a while if not used. A firmware upgrade helps with an older router so that it can also handle a secure SMB version: This has been the case with Fritz boxes, for example, since Fritz-OS 7.20.
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If the USB memory cannot be set up as a network drive on the router, it often helps to enter the direct path to a directory.
If, despite the correct SMB version, the USB drive on the router is still not displayed in the network environment of Windows Explorer, it helps to enter the direct path to the storage device – this can be done in the Windows search field or in the address bar of Windows Explorer . With a Fritzbox, for example, the entry is \\fritz.box. The router’s internal IP address should also work.
This way does not work with some routers. The path with the name of the stick or the hard disk based on the pattern “\\Router name\Storage name” does not lead to the destination either. Here you should refer directly to an existing folder on the USB memory: If you create a directory called “Downloads” on a stick or hard drive, it should appear after entering \\Router-Name\Downloads in Explorer or as a Connection path for the corresponding network drive works.
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