📂 How to Mount a Network Share (SMB/NFS) in Home Assistant OS

Here’s the correct syntax for each field.

---

🔹 1. Name

This is just a label for Home Assistant.
It also becomes the folder name under /media or /backup.

👉 Example:

jserver

---

🔹 2. Usage

Choose how you intend to use the share:

• Backup → will appear in /backup
• Media → will appear in /media
• Share → will appear in /share

👉 For camera recordings or music/video playback, pick Media.

---

🔹 3. Server

This is the hostname or IP of your NAS/Windows machine.

👉 Examples:

j-server
192.168.1.100

---

🔹 4. Protocol

Choose how to connect:

• Samba/Windows (CIFS) → for Windows shares and most NAS devices
• NFS → for NFS exports

👉 In most home setups, pick Samba/Windows (CIFS).

---

🔹 5. Remote Share (⚠️ the tricky one!)

This is not a Windows-style path.
You must use forward slashes (/) instead of backslashes (\).
Also, you enter the share name exactly as it is exported, not the drive letter.

👉 Correct format:

Sharename[/Optional/Subfolder]

Examples:

• If your NAS exports a share called Media Media
• If the share is called Archive and you want a subfolder Archive/Media

❌ Wrong: e\Archive\Media (Windows style, won’t work)
✅ Right: Archive/Media (Linux style)

---

🔹 6. Username & Password

Enter the Samba (Windows) credentials that have access to the share.

👉 Example:

Username: user name you set when setting up the share
Password: password you set

---

✅ Example Configuration (your case)

If your Windows machine j-server shares out a folder as Archive, and inside that is a subfolder Media, you’d fill it like this:

• Name:
  jserver
• Usage:
  Media
• Server:
  j-server
  (or use 192.168.1.100)
• Protocol:
  Samba/Windows (CIFS)
• Remote Share:
  Archive/Media

---

🔹 Where it Appears in Home Assistant

After saving, HA will mount it automatically.

• If you picked Media, the files appear in: /media/jserver
• You can browse them in the Media Browser UI.
• The camera.record action can save a clip directly to a network share configured with the Media usage.

Here is a complete Home Assistant automation action. Replace camera.front_door with your camera entity ID. The share must be added under Settings → System → Storage with Usage: Media; the /media/jserver path uses the network-storage name from the example above.

action: camera.record
target:
  entity_id: camera.front_door
data:
  filename: "/media/jserver/front_door.mp4"
  duration: 30

---

For connection checks before mounting, first confirm that the server name or IP resolves and that the SMB/NFS service is reachable from your network.