how to search contents of virtual machine (windows) from my mac

[marcsilber]

is there a way I can find word docs on my virtual machine running windows from my mac? 

[Technogeezer]

Your Mac does not have direct access to the file system on your Windows VM. If you use a cloud service such as OneDrive or iCloud, use Fusion’s shared folder function, or use Windows or Mac network file sharing features you can store your documents there and access them on both host and guest. 

You may be able to find third party utilities that will allow you to mount the file system of a non-running VM to access files. 

[marcsilber]

thanks, what's the best way to set up use Fusion’s shared folder function between the VM and the mac? I can see it in the VM as z drive (attached) but not on the mac- how to set that up?

[ColoradoMarmot]

You'll have to use windows file sharing inside the guest, then connect over the network - not within fusion.

[marcsilber]

I have it connected inside the guest (windows)

But how to connect over the network to the mac? 

[ColoradoMarmot]

Completely ignore fusion shared folders, file sharing, etc.  This is all about direct OS to OS sharing.

Something like this: Connect to a Windows computer from a Mac - Apple Supporthttps://support.apple.com › guide › mac-help...

Or 

Q: How do I connect to Windows file servers with Mac OS X?http://kb.mit.edu › confluence › pages › v...