Setting Up Apple Media and Entertainment SMB Shares

The MacOS Media Share purpose is available in TrueNAS 25.10.1 and later.

TrueNAS provides the MacOS Media Share purpose for professional media production workflows. This share type automatically enables Use Apple-style Character Encoding to translate NTFS illegal characters for proper file handling in Apple media and entertainment applications like Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Motion, and Compressor.

Apple-style character encoding ensures that special characters and metadata are preserved correctly, which is essential when working with media files that have complex naming conventions.

Before setting up a MacOS Media Share:

• Create user accounts for media users who access the share. Go to Credentials > Local Users and click Add. Ensure SMB Access is selected for each user.

• Prepare a dataset for the share (or you can create one during share creation). For best performance with large media files, consider:

  • Enabling compression (LZ4 is recommended for media files).
  • Setting appropriate record size (128K or larger for video files).
  • Configuring adequate space quotas.

• Turn on Enable Apple SMB2/3 Protocol Extensions for the SMB service (instructions below).

To set up a macOS media share, complete the following steps in order:

1. Enable Apple SMB2/3 Protocol Extensions
2. Create the Share and Dataset
3. Configure Advanced Options (optional)
4. Configure Dataset Permissions
5. Start the SMB Service and Mount the Share
6. Connect from Mac Client

Enable this service setting before creating the share.

1. Go to Shares and click on the Windows (SMB) Shares widget header.

2. Select Config Service to open the SMB Service screen.

   Alternatively, go to System > Services, locate SMB, and click the edit configure button.

3. Click Advanced Settings to expand advanced options.

4. Select Enable Apple SMB2/3 Protocol Extensions.

   

5. Click Save.

6. If the SMB service is already running, restart it for the changes to take effect.

You can either create the dataset first using the Datasets screen and then add the share, or create both together. This tutorial uses the Add SMB screen to create both the dataset and share at the same time.

1. Go to Shares and click Add on the Windows (SMB) Shares widget.

2. In the Path field, browse to the parent dataset where you want to create the share dataset.

   Browsing to select a path

   Click the arrow to the left of the folder icon to expand that folder and show any child datasets and directories. A solid folder icon shows for datasets and an outlined folder for directories. A selected dataset or directory folder and name shows in blue.

   

3. Click Create Dataset.

4. Enter a name for the dataset (e.g., AppleMediaShare or FCPProjects) and click Create.

   The dataset name populates the Name field and becomes the share name.

   

5. Select MacOS Media Share from the Purpose dropdown.

6. (Optional) Enter a description such as Final Cut Pro project storage to identify the share’s purpose.

7. Ensure Enabled is selected to activate the share when the SMB service is running.

8. If Apple SMB2/3 Protocol Extensions are not enabled, a requirement error appears below the Purpose field.

   

   Click Enable Now to enable the required setting in the SMB service configuration. Wait for the service to update. When complete, TrueNAS displays a success message confirming Apple SMB2/3 protocol extension support is enabled.

While creating a basic MacOS Media Share requires no additional configuration, you can customize access and logging settings.

1. Click Advanced Options to expand additional settings.

2. Configure Access settings as needed:

   • Export Read-Only: Leave unselected to allow media file editing.
   • Browsable to Network Clients: Enabled by default (recommended).
   • Access Based Share Enumeration: Select to enable if needed for your access control requirements.

   

3. Optionally enable Audit Logging:

   • Select Enable Logging to track share access.
   • Configure Watch List and Ignore List as needed for monitoring specific users or groups.

4. Note that Use Apple-style Character Encoding is automatically enabled under Other Options and cannot be disabled. This setting is enforced because Apple character encoding is required for proper operation of Apple media and entertainment applications.

5. Click Save to create the share.

After creating the share, configure dataset permissions to grant access to media users.

1. On the Shares screen, locate the new share in the Windows (SMB) Shares widget.

2. Click and select Edit Filesystem ACL.

3. Configure ACL entries for users or groups who need access:

   • For individual users: Add ACL entries with appropriate permissions (FULL for editors, READ for reviewers).
   • For groups: Create a group like media_users and add users, then add a group ACL entry.

4. Click Save Access Control List.

See Managing SMB Shares for detailed information on configuring ACL permissions.

If the SMB service is not running, start it from the Windows (SMB) Shares widget:

1. Click on the widget header.
2. Select Turn On Service.

On the Mac client, connect to the share:

1. Open Finder.
2. Select Go > Connect to Server (or press Cmd+K).
3. Enter the SMB address: smb://your-truenas-ip/share-name .
4. Authenticate with a user account that has access to the share.

The share is now available for use with Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, and other Apple media and entertainment applications.

After mounting the share, verify proper operation:

• File Creation: Create test files from Final Cut Pro or Logic Pro to verify proper file handling.

• Character Handling: Test filenames with special characters to confirm Apple character encoding is working correctly.

• Performance: Copy large media files to verify adequate transfer speeds for your workflow.

• Permissions: Test access with different user accounts to verify ACL configuration.

If you are migrating an existing media library from a standard SMB share to a MacOS Media Share, be aware that enabling Apple character encoding might affect existing files:

• Files created without Apple character encoding might display differently or have access issues.
• Existing project files might need to be re-indexed by media applications.
• Test thoroughly in a non-production environment before migrating production data.

Recommended Migration Approach:

1. Create a new MacOS Media Share.
2. Copy a subset of files for testing.
3. Verify all media applications can properly access and edit files. After verifying access, migrate remaining data.
4. Update media application libraries and project files to point to the new location.