How to Create a Shared Directory for All Users in Linux?

When multiple users need access to the same set of directories of files then we need to create shared folders to be used by the users. In Linux there is concept of users and groups which can be given certain level of permissions that will enable them to share the data. Below are the steps how to create the shared folders where users can and update the files individually.

Step 1 − Create the folder to be shared

Assuming we are setting up the shared folder from scratch, lets create the folder. The -p will create the directory and would ignore any errors if the directory already exists.

sudo mkdir -p /bigproject/sharedFolder

Step 2 − Create a user group

Next, we create a user group that will be used by users requiring access to this folder.

sudo groupadd SharedUsres

Step 3 − Create a user group

Next we create a user group which will be used by users requiring access to this folder.

sudo groupadd SharedUsres

Step 4 − Give permissions

Now we assign the new group to become owner of the shared folder and give them appropriate permissions which can also be inherited by the subdirectories.

sudo chgrp -R SharedUsers /bigproject/sharedFolder
sudo chmod -R 2775 /bigproject/sharedFolder

Step 5 − Add users to the group

Now we add usernames to this group show that they can use the shared folder.

useradd -D -g SharedFolder user1
useradd -D -g SharedFolder user2