File sharing doesn't work but screen sharing does

Oddly this solution worked for me as well. Never was able to get it to accept the iCloud credientials, it just gave me the shake for wrong information.

This sounds like a stupid question, but I cannot enter anything... The "connect as..." button does nothing. It just has the name of the computer, connection failed, connect as, share screen. The share screen works fine every time, but connect as does nothing when I click it. How do I fix it?

OS X Mavericks 10.9.1, released yesterday, should fix this...

It was a problem that you can work around [if you do not have time to run the update immediately] by turning Off the Firewall on your iMac.

I need to point out that this did not work for me and this is the only way that I long into File Sharing remotely.

A few weeks ago, I got a brand new iMac. Rather than doing a data migration, I rebuilt the machine from scratch and transferred files manually.I have no issues logining in remotely to File Share with this computer, but I still do with my other computer a mac Mini. The mini originally had Snow Leopard on it and I think this issue could have something to do with old data from legacy OS causing the problem.

I could not login to File Sharing (via connect as) on my previous iMac and again, that was a legacy machine that had the OS upgraded several times. I remember there were some MobileMe files that were causing problems with something at one point, so I think this might be an issue.

I guess a step would be to create a new user and see if it's a user level or system level issue.

That's my hunch.

So in short, a clean install of Mavericks should fix the issue.

I was having the same problem. File sharing was turned on, on the machine I was trying to connect to, but not the machine I was connecting from. For some reason turning file sharing on, on both computers fixed the problem for me.

Here is what I have done so far to diagnose this problem. I have a Macbook Pro and a iMac. I am able to connect to my MBP from the iMac via a Finder window but not the opposite direction. I get the same "shake" as described. I found that turning on file sharing puts a check box for both SMB and AFP. I can unckeck SMB and then I can connect to my iMac from my MBP from the finder but if SMB is checked I can not connect to my iMac. It dosen't matter whether AFP is checked or not. As long as SMB is checked I can't connect via the finder. I can always connect via "Connect to Server..." from the Go menu.

So are you only testing this within your local network? what address are you using to connect?

If you are using the Go To Server, then I assume that it is bypassing Back To My Mac and using standard protocols to connect.

My suspicion is still that because the one machine I am having issues with was an upgrade to Mavericks that there is some old preference or setting that's screwing things up. I did some testing using Console and got some error messaging that I will post at some point. Since my iMac is new, I'm ready to call Apple Care.

Has there been any update to this at all? My laptop will consistently not connect to File Sharing, but Screen Share works fine.

Of note, I can connect to the File Sharing for the two Time Capsules on my network, but no such luck for the MBP (mid 2009, 13.3").

I still have issues connecting to my iMac. It now allows me to connect but not share the screen (the opposite of how it was behaving in the past). I give up. Macs have a ways to go until they make file sharing between computers on a home network simple for people with limted tech knowledge to master.

I am still having this issue. Soon I will just wipe the Mac Mini that was an upgrade to iCloud (and thus still has Mobile Me files on it. I'm assuming that it is the Mobile Me association that is breaking this.

My bet is that a clean install will fix this issue.I will post back here when that happens.

For what it's worth, my setup was working with two machines on Mavericks until maybe a couple months ago, so it may or may not have to do with that or its updates (this is an iMac not on local network and a MBP on a home network) .

As I mentioned in my Jan 8, I have found that my setup, which is a MBP and an iMac on my home network, can connect via a finder window from either direction as long as the SMB boxes are not checked on the options pane of File Sharing. If the SMB box is checked I can not connect via the finder window but I am able to connect using the Connect to Server menu option. I have had no issues ever since setting my file sharing options in this fashion

Same for me. I am also using a new Macbook Pro Mavericks and connecting to an older Early 2008 iMac also running Mavericks. If I disable SMB (don't restart file sharing, that just turns it back on), then it works but only if you use the username. The AppleID method doesn't work at all. It worked before updating to the new version of 10.9.3, now it's broken it seems.

Thanks, sf23103!

I was having exactly the same problem and your solution worked for me. Thanks for your persistence in solving it and for posting it here.

This worked for me as well. I would like to add that I have not rebooted or updated either Mac in a long while. Nothing has changed. This morning I am suddenly not able to open my Mac Pro from my laptop?

After enabling SMB, which is Windows filesharing, and entering my password again I am given a warning that this is storing my password in a less secure manner. This leads me to believe that something else is the problem here. Not the filesharing, but the way our passwords are being stored for the filesharing as opposed to screen sharing.

I am back up and working now. But I hope this doesn't become one of those zombie bugs that Apple never addresses.

This is on Yosemite btw.