Step 1: Update Your System

Before installing NFS, ensure that your system is up to date. Run the following commands to update your package list and upgrade the installed packages:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Keeping your system updated is essential for stability and security, especially when using VPS Windows Servers for hosting your NFS server.

Step 2: Install NFS Server

To set up an NFS server, you need to install the nfs-kernel-server package. Run the following command on the server machine:

sudo apt install nfs-kernel-server -y

Once installed, start and enable the NFS service so that it starts automatically at boot:

sudo systemctl start nfs-kernel-server
sudo systemctl enable nfs-kernel-server

Step 3: Configure NFS Exports

The next step is to define which directories the NFS server will share. You do this by editing the /etc/exports file. For example, to share the /srv/nfs directory with a specific client or network, you can add the following line to the file:

sudo nano /etc/exports

/srv/nfs 192.168.1.0/24(rw,sync,no_subtree_check)

This configuration allows read/write access to the /srv/nfs directory for all clients in the 192.168.1.0/24 subnet. You can replace the IP address range with the appropriate one for your network.

After modifying the file, export the shared directories:

sudo exportfs -a

You should also restart the NFS server to apply the changes:

sudo systemctl restart nfs-kernel-server

Step 4: Configure Firewall for NFS

If you are using a firewall on your server, you will need to allow NFS traffic. Use the following command to allow NFS through the firewall:

sudo ufw allow from 192.168.1.0/24 to any port nfs

Replace 192.168.1.0/24 with the appropriate subnet or IP address range of your clients.

Reload the firewall to apply the changes:

sudo ufw reload

Step 5: Install NFS Client

On the client machine(s), you need to install the nfs-common package to enable NFS functionality:

sudo apt install nfs-common -y

Step 6: Mount NFS Share on Client

To mount the shared directory from the NFS server on the client machine, use the following command:

sudo mount 192.168.1.100:/srv/nfs /mnt

Replace 192.168.1.100 with the IP address of your NFS server, and /mnt with the directory where you want to mount the NFS share on the client.

To make the mount permanent, add the following line to the /etc/fstab file:

192.168.1.100:/srv/nfs /mnt nfs defaults 0 0

Step 7: Verify NFS Share

You can verify the NFS mount on the client by using the df -h command to check if the shared directory is listed:

df -h

This command will display the mounted file systems, and you should see the NFS share in the output.