This is described in graphic detail in the Wiki article on configuring the file servers.

Under Windows, do 'Start|Programs|Alfresco Labs|Alfresco Share''. This opens a browser and connects it to the Tomcat web server, which was installed during the Alfresco Full installation procedure, using the default address localhost:8080.

You must login once your browser has connected to the Alfresco server. With a new installation, the default user/password is admin/admin. Once accepted, the browser will display the Administrator Dashboard. Note that the admin login must be given a new and secure password immediately to avoid turning Alfresco into a security risk.

Once logged in, the first page displayed is the the Administrator Dashboard, which is used to control one or more Alfresco sites and provides several other facilities as well.

Clicking the Help button takes you to the Alfresco.com online help facility, so you must have access to the Internet to use this facility. If you receive an error, start by checking your access outside the firewall. It's worthwhile spending half an hour browsing this resource as it provides a fair amount of information about how an Alfresco installation works.

If you receive an error message of the form connection refused when attempting to contact localhost:8080, the most common possibilities are:

• Alfresco Server has not been started or has failed.
• Virtual Server has not been started or has failed.

Before assuming the worst, confirm that the Alfresco servers aren't still running through their startup procedures. If you have set Alfresco to start up automatically when your host boots, you should allow 10 to 15 minutes for the installation to stabilise, before attempting to access data in the shares.

• Installation Wiki has a useful page on the basics of an Alfresco installation.