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is it possible to put a truecrypt container on a net share and access/mount it form multiple machines (windows) at the same time?

I fear that if both would write the file could be corrupted.

quack quixote
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kcode
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1 Answers1

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Quoting from: http://www.truecrypt.org/docs/?s=sharing-over-network

As written under disadvantages:

The shared volume may be only file-hosted (not partition/device-hosted). The volume must be mounted in read-only mode under each of the systems (see the section Mount Options for information on how to mount a volume in read-only mode). Note that this requirement applies to unencrypted volumes too. One of the reasons is, for example, the fact that data read from a conventional file system under one OS while the file system is being modified by another OS might be inconsistent (which could result in data corruption).

So yes, you can but you do have a high risk in data corruption if you read and write from multiple workstations.

A solution for this would be to open the truecrypt file, share that drive/folder over the network for all other workstations to use. Do note that this is a lot less secure then using the truecrypt filesystem locally. (even when using vpn etc.)

S.Hoekstra
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  • will it mount as readonly automatically if someone has it open already? – kcode Apr 09 '10 at 08:51
  • No it will not automatically turn to read-only if the file is currently mounted. You will have to mark it as read-only on every truecrypt instance using the file. – S.Hoekstra Apr 09 '10 at 09:11
  • But you can share a mounted TrueCrypt volume on a network, just like any regular volume. When mounted, a TrueCrypt volume works exactly the same as any other volume; it only becomes corrupted if you dismount it while being used (same as with pen drives and such). – petersohn Apr 09 '10 at 09:25