How to set Windows Firewall to allow Docker for Windows to share drive

Question

Windows Firewall is blocking my attempt to allow Docker for Windows to share C: on windows 10 machine.

This works fine when Windows Firewall is down. But when it’s up, I get the following error:

A firewall is blocking file Sharing between Windows and the containers. See documentation for more info.

Answer 1

This is simple, you don't actually need to share the C drive but only reinstall the File and Print sharing service on the Hyper-V virtual network card.

Also if you’re facing any problem or restrictions on your network profiles, consider changing the default "unidentified network" for the "vEthernet (DockerNAT)" card to private via this PowerShell command.

Set-NetConnectionProfile -interfacealias "vEthernet (DockerNAT)" -NetworkCategory Private

Answer 2

Drives aren't accessed directly through Windows Explorer. They are accessed through an internal virtual network called DockerNAT. So basically, even though Docker is locally installed, it accesses your C: drive over the network like this \10.0.75.1\C:\$ instead of like this C:\$.

Check the following things:

• Check to see if the correct firewall rules are enabled. 
• Check Connectivity
• Check Docker network DNS settings.
• Make sure that the DockerNAT network is trusted in your AV firewall or Endpoint protection software.

Reference: https://success.docker.com/article/error-a-firewall-is-blocking-file-sharing-between-windows-and-the-containers

Answer 3

Follow these steps:

1. First, turn off Docker (wait until completely closed)
2. Disable Firewall
3. Turn on Docker
4. Share drive