Nearby Sharing (Archived)

File sharing has been an issue for as long as there have been files, and Windows has handled this need in different ways in the past. But Windows 10 and 11 introduce a new way to share files—and photos and website links, go figure–called Nearby sharing. And it’s likely you’ve never even heard of it, let alone used it before.

A quick survey of legacy sharing features

Before getting to Nearby sharing, let’s take a quick look at the other ways in which you might share documents, pictures, and other files with others using Windows 11. Each of these methods debuted in previous Windows versions—some long, long ago—and most are still available in Windows 11.

Advanced sharing. The original file sharing feature from Windows NT was renamed to “advanced sharing” over 20 years ago. It allows you to share the contents of a folder with a specific set of users or user types, each of which is assigned specific permissions (Full control, Change, and/or Read).

You must first enable Network discovery and file sharing to use Advanced sharing.

Simple sharing. This somewhat simpler file sharing feature debuted in Windows XP in 2001. It, too, allows you to share the contents of a folder, but only with specific users or everyone, and using simpler permission levels (Read and Read/Write).

You must first enable Network discovery and file sharing to use Simple sharing.

HomeGroup. This even simpler method for sharing files (and media and printers) debuted in Windows 7 in 2009 and was designed for individuals sharing over a home network using a central password. HomeGroup is no longer available in Windows 11.

Share. Windows 8 introduced a new system contract called Share that let you share information between Store apps. This functionality was extended to the desktop in Windows 10 so that you could share files.

Share with OneDrive. OneDrive in Windows 10 and 11 offers its own way to share files with others.

You can learn more about this in the OneDrive chapter.

Get to know Nearby sharing

Nearby sharing is the simplest method for sharing files in Windows yet. Unlike previous sharing methods, it doesn’t require you to configure permissions or passwords or figure out which Store apps might work. Likewise, it doesn’t leave file shares sitting open all the time, a potential security issue.

Instead, Nearby sharing uses a combination of Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to discover other PCs with which it can share and then, when directed, initiate and accept share requests on your behalf. When you’re done sharing, the two PCs are no longer connected.

Nearby sharing will use Wi-Fi for file transfers when both PCs are connected to the same Wi-Fi network. But it can actually work using just Bluetooth if the two PCs are very close together. Bluetooth-based file transfers are much slower than those using Wi-Fi.

The only complexity to Nearby sharing is that it needs to be enabled first on both the originating PC—the PC from which you are sharing—and on the destination PC. So let’s start there.

Enable Nearby sharing

To enable Nearby sharing, open Settings (WINKEY + I) and navigate to System > Nearby sharing. As you can see, it is disabled by default.

You have two options when enabling Nearby sharing:

My devices only. Nearby sharing will only find other PCs that are configured with the same Microsoft account you’re currently using. This is the better choice if you are just sharing with yourself.

Everyone nearby. Nearby sharing will find other PCs via Bluetooth or on the same Wi-Fi network that also have Nearby sharing enabled. This is the better choice if you wish to share with someone else nearby.

Use Nearby sharing to share a file

To share one or more files with Nearby sharing, locate the items you wish to share in File Explorer, select them, and then choose the Share icon in the File Explorer command bar.

Alternatively, right-click the selected file(s) and choose the Share icon in the context menu that appears.

If the items you selected are in OneDrive, you will see a different experience because OneDrive has its own way of sharing files. Please refer to the OneDrive chapter to learn more.

The Share window appears.

If you didn’t enable Nearby sharing, this window will prompt you to do so.

In the Nearby sharing section, you will see one or more other PCs with which you can share the selected items. Select the appropriate PC to initiate the share.

On the other PC, a similar prompt will appear, giving the receiver Save & open, Save, and Decline options.

If the receiver accepts the request, the items will be transferred over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.

Use Nearby sharing to share a website URL

You can also use Nearby sharing to share a website URL. Naturally, you can only do so via Microsoft Edge, the web browser that comes with Windows 11.

To do so, navigate to a website you would like to share. Then, select “Settings and more” (“…”) and then Share to display the Share pane.

Select “Windows share options” to display the Share window. Then, select the PC with which you’d like to share this website’s URL. A sharing request will be sent to the other PC.

On that other (receiving) PC, a notification will appear, and you can choose to open the link (in Microsoft Edge, of course) or decline it.

Use Nearby sharing to share a photo

You can also use Nearby sharing to share one or more photos using the Photos app. What’s interesting about this feature is that it doesn’t matter if the photo(s) you wish to share are on your PC or stored up in OneDrive: if you can see them with Photos, you can share them with Nearby sharing.

To do so, open the Photos app and select one or more pictures. Then, click the Share button in the Photo app’s toolbar. The Share window appears.

As with the previous examples, select the PC you wish to share with to initiate the sharing process. The selected pictures will be copied to the other PC if they accept.

If any of the pictures you selected are in OneDrive but not synced to your PC, the sharing process will take longer because Windows will need to download those pictures first.

Toggle Nearby sharing with Quick settings

If you think you’ll be using Nearby sharing a lot, you can consider adding a Nearby sharing tile button to Quick settings so that you can toggle this feature on and off more easily.

To do so, open Quick settings (WINKEY + A), select the “Edit quick settings” button, and then select the “+ Add” button. In the list of additional quick settings that appears, select “Nearby sharing.” Then, optionally move the new Nearby sharing button to a new location. Click “Done” when you’re finished.

The Nearby sharing button in Quick settings acts as a toggle. When Nearby sharing is enabled, it is configured to share with “Everyone nearby” and its Quick settings button will be visibly enabled. Just click the button to disable Nearby sharing.

You can learn more about Quick settings in the Quick Settings chapter.

Configure Nearby sharing

In addition to enabling Nearby sharing and choosing the audience with which you can share, Nearby sharing settings (Settings > System > Nearby sharing) provides a few other settings of note.

Save files I receive to. By default, accepted shared items will be saved to your Downloads folder, but you can use this setting to configure another location in the file system.

Your device is discoverable as “[PC name]“. By default, your PC will present itself to share requests using the same PC name you configure in About (Settings > System > About). You can’t use this setting to configure a different name for Nearby share. Instead, it navigates Settings to System > About so you can rename the PC now. Note that doing so will require you to reboot the PC.