Last Updated on June 14, 2026
Sharing files and folders is nothing new for Microsoft Windows users. If you have a home or office network, you can easily share folders so other people can access your files from their computer over the network. If you get to a point where you have created a bunch of shares and are starting to lose track of what folders you have shared, then there’s an easy way to see them all in one place and even manage them if needed.
To view your shares, you will need to open Computer Management on the computer with the shared folders or connect to that computer using your local Computer Management interface. To open the Computer Management console, simply right click on This PC and choose Manage, or type in Computer Management in the Run box.
Using Computer Management to View Shares
1. Open the Computer Management Console
To view your active network shares, you will need to open the Computer Management application on the host machine. You can connect to that computer using your local interface as well. To open this console, simply right click on This PC and choose Manage. You can also type Computer Management directly into the Run box.
2. Navigate to the Shared Folders Section
Once the Computer Management console opens, look at the left sidebar navigation pane. You can navigate to the Shared Folders category and then click on Shares. All your active shares as well as the administrative shares will be shown there. You will see the exact local path alongside how many other clients are currently connected to that specific share.
3. Modify or Create New Network Shares
You can do things such as stop sharing a folder and edit permissions right from this menu. Just right click on a particular share and choose the appropriate option from the context menu. You can even create brand new shares from the Action menu at the top. Alternatively, right click a blank area in the middle pane and choose New Share.
Managing Active Sessions and Open Files
1. View Connected User Sessions
If you click on the Sessions item on the left, you will be able to see exactly who is currently connected to that computer remotely. Here you can see the username of the person connected alongside the computer name that they are making the connection from. You can also see how long they have been connected and how many files they have opened.
2. Terminate an Active User Connection
Sometimes you need to kick a user off the network for maintenance or security reasons. You can easily close out their connection directly from this interface. Just right click on the active session and choose Close Session.
3. Monitor Open Network Files
The Open Files area will show you exactly what files and folders the connected users are currently accessing. Right clicking on a particular file will give you an option to forcefully close that open file. Do not expect this to be too straightforward though.
4. Handle Multiple File Handles
You may see multiple entries for the exact same folder path and Windows does not tell you the file names for the most part. Each of these entries is a system handle. If you try to close one, it may not have an immediate effect. You may have to try to close all of them to completely lock the file.
Managing Shared Folders on a Remote Computer
1. Connect to Another Computer
If you would like to view shared information on a remote computer from your local computer, you can do that easily. Open Computer Management locally and right click on the root Computer Management node at the top left. Choose Connect to another computer from the dropdown menu.
2. Enter the Remote Machine Name
A new dialog box will appear asking for the network location. Type in the name of that remote computer or use the browse button to find it on your local network. You will then be able to perform the exact same tasks you were able to do while logged in locally to that same computer.
Using PowerShell to View Open SMB Files
1. Launch Windows PowerShell as Admin
There is also a powerful command line method you can run to check network activity. You must open PowerShell with full administrator privileges for this to work. This command shows you a list of files currently open over SMB (Server Message Block) on your Windows system.
2. Understand the Command Output
The command filters the output to display just three specific details to keep things clean. It shows the ClientUserName which is the person who has the file open. It displays the ClientComputerName showing the machine they are using. Finally, it provides the Path to the file or folder that is currently open.
3. Execute the Get-SmbOpenFile Command
Type or paste the following command exactly as written into your terminal window. Press enter to execute it.
Get-SmbOpenFile | Select ClientUserName, ClientComputerName, Path
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