diff --git a/cmd/tailscale/cli/drive.go b/cmd/tailscale/cli/drive.go
index 280ff3172..77d57235f 100644
--- a/cmd/tailscale/cli/drive.go
+++ b/cmd/tailscale/cli/drive.go
@@ -8,11 +8,13 @@ package cli
 import (
 	"context"
 	"fmt"
+	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/peterbourgon/ff/v3/ffcli"
 	"tailscale.com/drive"
+	"tailscale.com/feature/buildfeatures"
 )
 
 const (
@@ -80,10 +82,27 @@ func runDriveShare(ctx context.Context, args []string) error {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	err = localClient.DriveShareSet(ctx, &drive.Share{
+	share := &drive.Share{
 		Name: name,
 		Path: absolutePath,
-	})
+	}
+
+	// "magic" is a reserved share name (drive.MagicShareName). Magic shares
+	// are treated specially server-side: each top-level directory inside the
+	// share encodes its own ACL (see package drive/magic). The path must
+	// already exist and be a directory; for non-magic shares we leave that
+	// check to the backend.
+	if buildfeatures.HasDriveMagic && share.IsMagic() {
+		fi, err := os.Stat(absolutePath)
+		if err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("magic share path: %w", err)
+		}
+		if !fi.IsDir() {
+			return fmt.Errorf("magic share path %q is not a directory", absolutePath)
+		}
+	}
+
+	err = localClient.DriveShareSet(ctx, share)
 	if err == nil {
 		fmt.Printf("Sharing %q as %q\n", path, name)
 	}
@@ -144,11 +163,19 @@ func runDriveList(ctx context.Context, args []string) error {
 			longestAs = len(share.As)
 		}
 	}
-	formatString := fmt.Sprintf("%%-%ds    %%-%ds    %%s\n", longestName, longestPath)
-	fmt.Printf(formatString, "name", "path", "as")
-	fmt.Printf(formatString, strings.Repeat("-", longestName), strings.Repeat("-", longestPath), strings.Repeat("-", longestAs))
+	formatString := fmt.Sprintf("%%-%ds    %%-%ds    %%-%ds    %%s\n", longestName, longestPath, longestAs)
+	fmt.Printf(formatString, "name", "path", "as", "type")
+	fmt.Printf(formatString,
+		strings.Repeat("-", longestName),
+		strings.Repeat("-", longestPath),
+		strings.Repeat("-", longestAs),
+		"----")
 	for _, share := range shares {
-		fmt.Printf(formatString, share.Name, share.Path, share.As)
+		typ := "normal"
+		if buildfeatures.HasDriveMagic && share.IsMagic() {
+			typ = "magic"
+		}
+		fmt.Printf(formatString, share.Name, share.Path, share.As, typ)
 	}
 
 	return nil
diff --git a/cmd/tailscaled/deps_test.go b/cmd/tailscaled/deps_test.go
index be4f65a7d..d5c9edf48 100644
--- a/cmd/tailscaled/deps_test.go
+++ b/cmd/tailscaled/deps_test.go
@@ -93,6 +93,17 @@ func TestOmitDrive(t *testing.T) {
 	}.Check(t)
 }
 
+func TestOmitDriveMagic(t *testing.T) {
+	deptest.DepChecker{
+		GOOS:   "linux",
+		GOARCH: "amd64",
+		Tags:   "ts_omit_drive_magic,ts_include_cli",
+		BadDeps: map[string]string{
+			"tailscale.com/drive/magic": "unexpected dep with ts_omit_drive_magic",
+		},
+	}.Check(t)
+}
+
 func TestOmitPortmapper(t *testing.T) {
 	deptest.DepChecker{
 		GOOS:   "linux",
diff --git a/drive/driveimpl/drive_test.go b/drive/driveimpl/drive_test.go
index 8f9b43d6b..ae006a0c0 100644
--- a/drive/driveimpl/drive_test.go
+++ b/drive/driveimpl/drive_test.go
@@ -438,6 +438,8 @@ type remote struct {
 	fileServer  *FileServer
 	shares      map[string]string
 	permissions map[string]drive.Permission
+	peerLogin   string
+	sharerLogin string
 	mu          sync.RWMutex
 }
 
@@ -452,7 +454,11 @@ func (r *remote) unfreeze() {
 func (r *remote) ServeHTTP(w http.ResponseWriter, req *http.Request) {
 	r.mu.RLock()
 	defer r.mu.RUnlock()
-	r.fs.ServeHTTPWithPerms(r.permissions, w, req)
+	r.fs.ServeHTTPWithPerms(drive.Authz{
+		PeerLogin:   r.peerLogin,
+		SharerLogin: r.sharerLogin,
+		Permissions: r.permissions,
+	}, w, req)
 }
 
 type system struct {
@@ -745,7 +751,7 @@ func pathTo(remote, share, name string) string {
 type noopAuthorizer struct{}
 
 func (a *noopAuthorizer) NewAuthenticator(body io.Reader) (gowebdav.Authenticator, io.Reader) {
-	return &noopAuthenticator{}, nil
+	return &noopAuthenticator{}, body
 }
 
 func (a *noopAuthorizer) AddAuthenticator(key string, fn gowebdav.AuthFactory) {
diff --git a/drive/driveimpl/magic_test.go b/drive/driveimpl/magic_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..6835a5b38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/drive/driveimpl/magic_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,220 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+//go:build !ts_omit_drive_magic
+
+package driveimpl
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"slices"
+	"sort"
+	"testing"
+
+	"tailscale.com/drive"
+)
+
+// addMagicShare configures the named remote to expose a magic share.
+// The share's on-disk path is returned so the caller can prepopulate
+// ACL directories.
+func (s *system) addMagicShare(remoteName, shareName, peerLogin, sharerLogin string) string {
+	r, ok := s.remotes[remoteName]
+	if !ok {
+		s.t.Fatalf("unknown remote %q", remoteName)
+	}
+
+	folder := s.t.TempDir()
+	r.shares[shareName] = folder
+	r.permissions[shareName] = drive.PermissionReadWrite
+	r.peerLogin = peerLogin
+	r.sharerLogin = sharerLogin
+
+	shares := make([]*drive.Share, 0, len(r.shares))
+	for n, f := range r.shares {
+		shares = append(shares, &drive.Share{Name: n, Path: f})
+	}
+	slices.SortFunc(shares, drive.CompareShares)
+	r.fs.SetShares(shares)
+	r.fileServer.SetShares(r.shares)
+	return folder
+}
+
+// setPeer rebinds the peer/sharer login for the given remote. The remote's
+// ServeHTTP picks up these values on each request, so this works for tests
+// that simulate different peer identities against the same sharer.
+func (s *system) setPeer(remoteName, peerLogin, sharerLogin string) {
+	r, ok := s.remotes[remoteName]
+	if !ok {
+		s.t.Fatalf("unknown remote %q", remoteName)
+	}
+	r.mu.Lock()
+	r.peerLogin = peerLogin
+	r.sharerLogin = sharerLogin
+	r.mu.Unlock()
+}
+
+func mkdir(t *testing.T, parent, name string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	if err := os.Mkdir(filepath.Join(parent, name), 0755); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("mkdir %q: %v", name, err)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMagicShareDiscoveryAndListing(t *testing.T) {
+	const (
+		magicShare    = "magic"
+		sharerLogin   = "fserb@example.com"
+		peerRhea      = "rhea@example.com"
+		peerJoe       = "joe@example.com"
+		peerStranger  = "stranger@example.com"
+		dirSharerOnly = "fserb"
+		dirSharerRhea = "fserb+rhea"
+		dirNoSharer   = "rhea+joe"   // invalid: no sharer
+		dirGarbage    = "not a name" // invalid grammar
+	)
+
+	s := newSystem(t)
+	s.addRemote(remote1)
+	folder := s.addMagicShare(remote1, magicShare, peerRhea, sharerLogin)
+
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirSharerOnly)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirSharerRhea)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirNoSharer)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirGarbage)
+
+	// rhea sees only the dirs that name both sharer and rhea.
+	checkMagicListing(t, s, magicShare, []string{dirSharerRhea})
+
+	// joe is matched by no dir.
+	s.setPeer(remote1, peerJoe, sharerLogin)
+	checkMagicListing(t, s, magicShare, nil)
+
+	// fserb on another node sees their own dirs.
+	s.setPeer(remote1, sharerLogin, sharerLogin)
+	checkMagicListing(t, s, magicShare, []string{dirSharerOnly, dirSharerRhea})
+
+	// A peer not in any dir, but with the share grant, gets an empty
+	// listing (not 404).
+	s.setPeer(remote1, peerStranger, sharerLogin)
+	checkMagicListing(t, s, magicShare, nil)
+}
+
+func TestMagicShareReadWrite(t *testing.T) {
+	const (
+		magicShare  = "magic"
+		sharerLogin = "fserb@example.com"
+		peerRhea    = "rhea@example.com"
+		peerJoe     = "joe@example.com"
+		dirShared   = "fserb+rhea"
+		dirOther    = "fserb"
+		dirInvalid  = "rhea+joe"
+		fname       = "note.txt"
+	)
+
+	s := newSystem(t)
+	s.addRemote(remote1)
+	folder := s.addMagicShare(remote1, magicShare, peerRhea, sharerLogin)
+
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirShared)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirOther)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirInvalid)
+
+	// rhea can read/write inside dirShared.
+	rheaPath := path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare, dirShared, fname)
+	if err := s.client.Write(rheaPath, []byte("hi from rhea"), 0644); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("rhea write into %q: %v", dirShared, err)
+	}
+	// Verify it actually landed on disk under the share folder.
+	onDisk := filepath.Join(folder, dirShared, fname)
+	if b, err := os.ReadFile(onDisk); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("on-disk read after write: %v (file %s)", err, onDisk)
+	} else if string(b) != "hi from rhea" {
+		t.Fatalf("on-disk content %q != written %q", b, "hi from rhea")
+	}
+	got, err := s.client.Read(rheaPath)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("rhea read from %q: %v", dirShared, err)
+	}
+	if string(got) != "hi from rhea" {
+		t.Errorf("rhea read got %q, want %q", got, "hi from rhea")
+	}
+
+	// rhea cannot write into a dir she's not in.
+	otherPath := path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare, dirOther, fname)
+	if err := s.client.Write(otherPath, []byte("nope"), 0644); err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("rhea write into %q should have failed", dirOther)
+	}
+
+	// rhea cannot read from a dir she's not in.
+	if _, err := s.client.Read(otherPath); err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("rhea read from %q should have failed", dirOther)
+	}
+
+	// dirInvalid is invalid (no sharer in name): nobody, including the
+	// principals named, can access it.
+	s.setPeer(remote1, peerJoe, sharerLogin)
+	invalidPath := path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare, dirInvalid, fname)
+	if err := s.client.Write(invalidPath, []byte("x"), 0644); err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("joe write into invalid dir %q should have failed", dirInvalid)
+	}
+
+	// joe also cannot list anything (no matching dirs).
+	checkMagicListing(t, s, magicShare, nil)
+}
+
+func TestMagicShareTopLevelMutationsDenied(t *testing.T) {
+	const (
+		magicShare  = "magic"
+		sharerLogin = "fserb@example.com"
+		peerRhea    = "rhea@example.com"
+		dirShared   = "fserb+rhea"
+	)
+
+	s := newSystem(t)
+	s.addRemote(remote1)
+	folder := s.addMagicShare(remote1, magicShare, peerRhea, sharerLogin)
+	mkdir(t, folder, dirShared)
+
+	// MKCOL of a brand new top-level dir name must fail.
+	newDir := path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare, "fserb+rhea+joe")
+	if err := s.client.Mkdir(newDir, 0755); err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("mkcol of new top-level dir should have been denied")
+	}
+
+	// DELETE of an existing top-level dir must fail.
+	existingDir := path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare, dirShared)
+	if err := s.client.RemoveAll(existingDir); err == nil {
+		t.Errorf("delete of existing top-level dir should have been denied")
+	}
+
+	// But files inside the dir can be deleted normally.
+	filePath := path.Join(existingDir, "f.txt")
+	if err := s.client.Write(filePath, []byte("hi"), 0644); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("write inside acl dir: %v", err)
+	}
+	if err := s.client.Remove(filePath); err != nil {
+		t.Errorf("delete inside acl dir failed: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// checkMagicListing verifies that a depth-1 listing of /<domain>/<remote>/<magicShare>/
+// returns exactly want (in any order).
+func checkMagicListing(t *testing.T, s *system, magicShare string, want []string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	entries, err := s.client.ReadDir(path.Join(domain, remote1, magicShare))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("readdir: %v", err)
+	}
+	got := make([]string, 0, len(entries))
+	for _, e := range entries {
+		got = append(got, e.Name())
+	}
+	sort.Strings(got)
+	sortedWant := append([]string(nil), want...)
+	sort.Strings(sortedWant)
+	if !slices.Equal(got, sortedWant) {
+		t.Errorf("listing got %v, want %v", got, sortedWant)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl.go b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl.go
index 0ff27dc64..ea5e75f42 100644
--- a/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl.go
+++ b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl.go
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ import (
 	"tailscale.com/drive/driveimpl/compositedav"
 	"tailscale.com/drive/driveimpl/dirfs"
 	"tailscale.com/drive/driveimpl/shared"
+	"tailscale.com/feature/buildfeatures"
 	"tailscale.com/safesocket"
 	"tailscale.com/types/logger"
 )
@@ -199,11 +200,14 @@ func (s *FileSystemForRemote) buildChild(share *drive.Share) *compositedav.Child
 }
 
 // ServeHTTPWithPerms implements drive.FileSystemForRemote.
-func (s *FileSystemForRemote) ServeHTTPWithPerms(permissions drive.Permissions, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+func (s *FileSystemForRemote) ServeHTTPWithPerms(authz drive.Authz, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	permissions := authz.Permissions
+	pathComponents := shared.CleanAndSplit(r.URL.Path)
+	shareName := pathComponents[0]
+
 	isWrite := writeMethods[r.Method]
 	if isWrite {
-		share := shared.CleanAndSplit(r.URL.Path)[0]
-		switch permissions.For(share) {
+		switch permissions.For(shareName) {
 		case drive.PermissionNone:
 			// If we have no permissions to this share, treat it as not found
 			// to avoid leaking any information about the share's existence.
@@ -216,16 +220,32 @@ func (s *FileSystemForRemote) ServeHTTPWithPerms(permissions drive.Permissions,
 	}
 
 	s.mu.RLock()
+	var matchedShare *drive.Share
+	for _, sh := range s.shares {
+		if sh.Name == shareName {
+			matchedShare = sh
+			break
+		}
+	}
 	childrenMap := s.children
 	s.mu.RUnlock()
 
+	if s.maybeServeMagic(authz, matchedShare, pathComponents, w, r) {
+		return
+	}
+
 	children := make([]*compositedav.Child, 0, len(childrenMap))
-	// filter out shares to which the connecting principal has no access
+	// filter out shares to which the connecting principal has no access. The
+	// magic share, if present, is also excluded here so a peer with the
+	// share-level grant can't bypass per-dir filtering by hitting top-level
+	// dirs directly through compositedav: it's served only via serveMagic.
 	for name, child := range childrenMap {
 		if permissions.For(name) == drive.PermissionNone {
 			continue
 		}
-
+		if buildfeatures.HasDriveMagic && name == drive.MagicShareName {
+			continue
+		}
 		children = append(children, child)
 	}
 
diff --git a/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_magic.go b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_magic.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..bb557d887
--- /dev/null
+++ b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_magic.go
@@ -0,0 +1,147 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+//go:build !ts_omit_drive_magic
+
+package driveimpl
+
+import (
+	"net/http"
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"sort"
+
+	"github.com/tailscale/xnet/webdav"
+	"tailscale.com/drive"
+	"tailscale.com/drive/driveimpl/compositedav"
+	"tailscale.com/drive/driveimpl/dirfs"
+	"tailscale.com/drive/magic"
+)
+
+// topLevelDirWriteMethods are write-ish WebDAV methods that, when targeted
+// at a magic share's top-level ACL directory itself (e.g. /<magic>/<acldir>),
+// must be denied. Top-level dir creation/deletion is equivalent to writing
+// a grant and is sharer-local only.
+var topLevelDirWriteMethods = map[string]bool{
+	"MKCOL":     true,
+	"DELETE":    true,
+	"MOVE":      true,
+	"PROPPATCH": true,
+	"COPY":      true,
+}
+
+// maybeServeMagic dispatches to the magic-share handler if share is a magic
+// share, returning true if the request was handled.
+func (s *FileSystemForRemote) maybeServeMagic(authz drive.Authz, share *drive.Share, pathComponents []string, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) bool {
+	if !share.IsMagic() {
+		return false
+	}
+	s.serveMagic(authz, share, pathComponents, w, r)
+	return true
+}
+
+// serveMagic handles a request whose first path segment is a magic share.
+// It enforces ACL-name filtering: peers only see (and can only descend into)
+// top-level directories whose name encodes an ACL they match. Top-level dir
+// creation/deletion is denied for remote peers.
+func (s *FileSystemForRemote) serveMagic(authz drive.Authz, share *drive.Share, pathComponents []string, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	if len(pathComponents) == 1 || (len(pathComponents) == 2 && pathComponents[1] == "") {
+		if writeMethods[r.Method] {
+			http.Error(w, "magic share top-level is read-only for remote peers", http.StatusForbidden)
+			return
+		}
+		s.serveMagicTopLevel(authz, share, w, r)
+		return
+	}
+
+	aclDir := pathComponents[1]
+	if !aclDirGrantsPeer(authz, share.Path, aclDir) {
+		// Use 404 rather than 403 to avoid confirming the dir's existence.
+		http.Error(w, "not found", http.StatusNotFound)
+		return
+	}
+
+	if len(pathComponents) == 2 && topLevelDirWriteMethods[r.Method] {
+		http.Error(w, "magic top-level dir is sharer-local only", http.StatusForbidden)
+		return
+	}
+
+	// Forward to the regular compositedav pipeline. We rebuild children
+	// rather than reusing the cached map directly, because the magic share
+	// must remain accessible here even though it was filtered out above.
+	s.mu.RLock()
+	childrenMap := s.children
+	s.mu.RUnlock()
+
+	children := make([]*compositedav.Child, 0, len(childrenMap))
+	for name, child := range childrenMap {
+		if name != share.Name && authz.Permissions.For(name) == drive.PermissionNone {
+			continue
+		}
+		children = append(children, child)
+	}
+
+	h := compositedav.Handler{Logf: s.logf}
+	h.SetChildren("", children...)
+	h.ServeHTTP(w, r)
+}
+
+// serveMagicTopLevel serves a synthetic listing of /<share>/ that contains
+// only the top-level dirs the peer matches.
+func (s *FileSystemForRemote) serveMagicTopLevel(authz drive.Authz, share *drive.Share, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	var children []*dirfs.Child
+	if authz.SharerLogin != "" {
+		entries, err := os.ReadDir(share.Path)
+		if err != nil {
+			s.logf("taildrive magic: read dir %q: %v", share.Path, err)
+		}
+		names := make([]string, 0, len(entries))
+		for _, e := range entries {
+			if !e.IsDir() {
+				continue
+			}
+			acl, err := magic.ParseDirACL(e.Name())
+			if err != nil {
+				continue
+			}
+			if acl.Matches(authz.PeerLogin, authz.SharerLogin) {
+				names = append(names, e.Name())
+			}
+		}
+		sort.Strings(names)
+		children = make([]*dirfs.Child, 0, len(names))
+		for _, n := range names {
+			children = append(children, &dirfs.Child{Name: n})
+		}
+	}
+	wh := &webdav.Handler{
+		LockSystem: webdav.NewMemLS(),
+		FileSystem: &dirfs.FS{
+			Children:   children,
+			StaticRoot: share.Name,
+		},
+	}
+	wh.ServeHTTP(w, r)
+}
+
+// aclDirGrantsPeer reports whether aclDir exists on disk under sharePath as a
+// directory and its parsed ACL grants the peer access (sharer-in-name rule
+// plus peer match). It does no enumeration; only the single aclDir is
+// inspected.
+func aclDirGrantsPeer(authz drive.Authz, sharePath, aclDir string) bool {
+	if authz.SharerLogin == "" {
+		return false
+	}
+	acl, err := magic.ParseDirACL(aclDir)
+	if err != nil {
+		return false
+	}
+	if !acl.Matches(authz.PeerLogin, authz.SharerLogin) {
+		return false
+	}
+	fi, err := os.Stat(filepath.Join(sharePath, aclDir))
+	if err != nil || !fi.IsDir() {
+		return false
+	}
+	return true
+}
diff --git a/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_nomagic.go b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_nomagic.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..632c2d39f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/drive/driveimpl/remote_impl_nomagic.go
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+//go:build ts_omit_drive_magic
+
+package driveimpl
+
+import (
+	"net/http"
+
+	"tailscale.com/drive"
+)
+
+// maybeServeMagic is a stub for builds without the magic-share feature.
+// It never claims the request, so a share named "magic" is served as a
+// regular share with no name-encoded ACL semantics.
+func (s *FileSystemForRemote) maybeServeMagic(authz drive.Authz, share *drive.Share, pathComponents []string, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) bool {
+	return false
+}
diff --git a/drive/magic/magic.go b/drive/magic/magic.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..cac134fae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/drive/magic/magic.go
@@ -0,0 +1,144 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+// Package magic implements the parsing and matching logic for the
+// taildrive "magic" share, where the directory name itself encodes the ACL.
+//
+// A magic ACL directory name is a "+"-delimited list of principals. Each
+// principal is either a short login (matching the local-part of a tailnet
+// LoginName) or a full login email. The sharer's own login must appear in
+// every directory name; a directory whose name omits the sharer is
+// considered invalid and shared with no one.
+package magic
+
+import (
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"strings"
+)
+
+// ErrInvalidName is returned by ParseDirACL when the directory name is empty
+// or contains a malformed principal.
+var ErrInvalidName = errors.New("invalid magic acl directory name")
+
+// DirACL is a parsed magic-share directory name.
+type DirACL struct {
+	// Users is the deduplicated list of user specs in the directory name,
+	// in the order they first appeared, normalized to lowercase.
+	// Each spec is either a short login (no "@") or a full login email.
+	Users []string
+}
+
+// ParseDirACL parses name as a magic ACL. Names are normalized to lowercase
+// and split on "+". Returns ErrInvalidName if name is empty or contains a
+// malformed principal.
+func ParseDirACL(name string) (DirACL, error) {
+	name = strings.ToLower(strings.TrimSpace(name))
+	if name == "" {
+		return DirACL{}, ErrInvalidName
+	}
+	parts := strings.Split(name, "+")
+	users := make([]string, 0, len(parts))
+	seen := make(map[string]bool, len(parts))
+	for _, p := range parts {
+		if !validUserSpec(p) {
+			return DirACL{}, fmt.Errorf("%w: %q", ErrInvalidName, p)
+		}
+		if seen[p] {
+			continue
+		}
+		seen[p] = true
+		users = append(users, p)
+	}
+	return DirACL{Users: users}, nil
+}
+
+// validUserSpec reports whether s is a syntactically valid user spec.
+// A short login is a non-empty sequence of [a-z0-9_.-]. An email is a short
+// login, "@", and a non-empty sequence of [a-z0-9.-] (a hostname-ish
+// fragment).
+func validUserSpec(s string) bool {
+	if s == "" {
+		return false
+	}
+	local, host, hasAt := strings.Cut(s, "@")
+	if local == "" {
+		return false
+	}
+	if !validLocalPart(local) {
+		return false
+	}
+	if !hasAt {
+		return true
+	}
+	return validHost(host)
+}
+
+func validLocalPart(s string) bool {
+	for _, r := range s {
+		switch {
+		case 'a' <= r && r <= 'z':
+		case '0' <= r && r <= '9':
+		case r == '_' || r == '.' || r == '-':
+		default:
+			return false
+		}
+	}
+	return true
+}
+
+func validHost(s string) bool {
+	if s == "" {
+		return false
+	}
+	for _, r := range s {
+		switch {
+		case 'a' <= r && r <= 'z':
+		case '0' <= r && r <= '9':
+		case r == '.' || r == '-':
+		default:
+			return false
+		}
+	}
+	return true
+}
+
+// Matches reports whether peerLogin is granted access by this ACL given that
+// the local node's tailnet login is sharerLogin. Both arguments are full
+// LoginNames (e.g. "alice@example.com") and are matched case-insensitively.
+//
+// The "sharer-in-name" rule is enforced: if no principal in the ACL matches
+// sharerLogin, the directory is invalid and Matches returns false for every
+// peer.
+func (a DirACL) Matches(peerLogin, sharerLogin string) bool {
+	peerLogin = strings.ToLower(peerLogin)
+	sharerLogin = strings.ToLower(sharerLogin)
+	sharerOK := false
+	peerOK := false
+	for _, u := range a.Users {
+		if matchesUser(u, sharerLogin) {
+			sharerOK = true
+		}
+		if matchesUser(u, peerLogin) {
+			peerOK = true
+		}
+	}
+	return sharerOK && peerOK
+}
+
+// matchesUser reports whether spec matches login. spec and login are
+// pre-lowercased. spec is either a short login (matched against the
+// local-part of login) or a full email (matched against login as a whole).
+func matchesUser(spec, login string) bool {
+	if login == "" {
+		return false
+	}
+	if strings.ContainsRune(spec, '@') {
+		return spec == login
+	}
+	local, _, ok := strings.Cut(login, "@")
+	if !ok {
+		local = login
+	}
+	return spec == local
+}
diff --git a/drive/magic/magic_test.go b/drive/magic/magic_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9bc433085
--- /dev/null
+++ b/drive/magic/magic_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,82 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+package magic
+
+import (
+	"slices"
+	"testing"
+)
+
+func TestParseDirACL(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name    string
+		want    []string
+		wantErr bool
+	}{
+		{"fserb", []string{"fserb"}, false},
+		{"fserb+rhea", []string{"fserb", "rhea"}, false},
+		{"Fserb+RHEA", []string{"fserb", "rhea"}, false},
+		{"fserb+fserb", []string{"fserb"}, false},
+		{"fserb+rhea+joe", []string{"fserb", "rhea", "joe"}, false},
+		{"fserb@example.com+rhea", []string{"fserb@example.com", "rhea"}, false},
+
+		{"", nil, true},
+		{"+fserb", nil, true},
+		{"fserb+", nil, true},
+		{"fserb++rhea", nil, true},
+		{"fserb rhea", nil, true},
+		{"fserb!", nil, true},
+		{"@example.com", nil, true},
+		{"fserb@", nil, true},
+		{"fserb@@example.com", nil, true},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got, err := ParseDirACL(tt.name)
+			if (err != nil) != tt.wantErr {
+				t.Fatalf("err=%v, wantErr=%v", err, tt.wantErr)
+			}
+			if tt.wantErr {
+				return
+			}
+			if !slices.Equal(got.Users, tt.want) {
+				t.Errorf("Users=%v, want %v", got.Users, tt.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestMatches(t *testing.T) {
+	const sharer = "fserb@example.com"
+	tests := []struct {
+		name      string
+		dir       string
+		peerLogin string
+		want      bool
+	}{
+		{"sharer matches own dir", "fserb", sharer, true},
+		{"sharer matches paired dir", "fserb+rhea", sharer, true},
+		{"peer matches paired dir (short)", "fserb+rhea", "rhea@example.com", true},
+		{"peer matches paired dir (email)", "fserb+rhea@example.com", "rhea@example.com", true},
+		{"peer mismatch full email", "fserb+rhea@other.com", "rhea@example.com", false},
+		{"peer not in dir", "fserb+rhea", "joe@example.com", false},
+		{"sharer-not-in-name invalidates dir for peer", "rhea+joe", "rhea@example.com", false},
+		{"sharer-not-in-name invalidates dir for sharer too", "rhea+joe", sharer, false},
+		{"empty peer login", "fserb", "", false},
+		{"three principal dir, peer ok", "fserb+rhea+joe", "joe@example.com", true},
+		{"case-insensitive peer", "fserb+rhea", "RHEA@example.com", true},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			acl, err := ParseDirACL(tt.dir)
+			if err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("parse %q: %v", tt.dir, err)
+			}
+			got := acl.Matches(tt.peerLogin, sharer)
+			if got != tt.want {
+				t.Errorf("Matches(%q, %q)=%v, want %v", tt.peerLogin, sharer, got, tt.want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/drive/remote.go b/drive/remote.go
index 5f34d0023..b1288abb2 100644
--- a/drive/remote.go
+++ b/drive/remote.go
@@ -48,6 +48,17 @@ type Share struct {
 	BookmarkData []byte `json:"bookmarkData,omitempty"`
 }
 
+// MagicShareName is the reserved share name for a magic share, where each
+// top-level directory name inside the share encodes its own ACL (see package
+// drive/magic). A share is treated as magic if and only if its Name equals
+// MagicShareName.
+const MagicShareName = "magic"
+
+// IsMagic reports whether s is a magic share.
+func (s *Share) IsMagic() bool {
+	return s != nil && s.Name == MagicShareName
+}
+
 func ShareViewsEqual(a, b ShareView) bool {
 	if !a.Valid() && !b.Valid() {
 		return true
@@ -102,9 +113,8 @@ type FileSystemForRemote interface {
 	SetShares(shares []*Share)
 
 	// ServeHTTPWithPerms behaves like the similar method from http.Handler but
-	// also accepts a Permissions map that captures the permissions of the
-	// connecting node.
-	ServeHTTPWithPerms(permissions Permissions, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request)
+	// also accepts an Authz value capturing the peer's identity and permissions.
+	ServeHTTPWithPerms(authz Authz, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request)
 
 	// Close() stops serving the WebDAV content
 	Close() error
diff --git a/drive/remote_permissions.go b/drive/remote_permissions.go
index 31ec0caee..74497258d 100644
--- a/drive/remote_permissions.go
+++ b/drive/remote_permissions.go
@@ -27,6 +27,23 @@ const (
 // set of shares.
 type Permissions map[string]Permission
 
+// Authz captures the authorization context for a request to
+// FileSystemForRemote: the peer's tailnet identity and per-share permissions,
+// plus the local node's tailnet identity (used for the magic share's
+// "sharer-in-name" rule).
+type Authz struct {
+	// PeerLogin is the requesting peer's tailnet LoginName (e.g.
+	// "alice@example.com"). Lowercased for case-insensitive matching.
+	PeerLogin string
+
+	// SharerLogin is the local (sharing) node's tailnet LoginName.
+	// Lowercased for case-insensitive matching.
+	SharerLogin string
+
+	// Permissions maps share name to the peer's permission on that share.
+	Permissions Permissions
+}
+
 type grant struct {
 	Shares []string
 	Access string
diff --git a/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_disabled.go b/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_disabled.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..cb32076ee
--- /dev/null
+++ b/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_disabled.go
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+// Code generated by gen.go; DO NOT EDIT.
+
+//go:build ts_omit_drive_magic
+
+package buildfeatures
+
+// HasDriveMagic is whether the binary was built with support for modular feature "Taildrive \"magic\" share (directory-name-encoded ACLs)".
+// Specifically, it's whether the binary was NOT built with the "ts_omit_drive_magic" build tag.
+// It's a const so it can be used for dead code elimination.
+const HasDriveMagic = false
diff --git a/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_enabled.go b/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_enabled.go
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..57cc4c8d7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/feature/buildfeatures/feature_drive_magic_enabled.go
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+// Copyright (c) Tailscale Inc & contributors
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+
+// Code generated by gen.go; DO NOT EDIT.
+
+//go:build !ts_omit_drive_magic
+
+package buildfeatures
+
+// HasDriveMagic is whether the binary was built with support for modular feature "Taildrive \"magic\" share (directory-name-encoded ACLs)".
+// Specifically, it's whether the binary was NOT built with the "ts_omit_drive_magic" build tag.
+// It's a const so it can be used for dead code elimination.
+const HasDriveMagic = true
diff --git a/feature/featuretags/featuretags.go b/feature/featuretags/featuretags.go
index 4f34acbe8..d62293841 100644
--- a/feature/featuretags/featuretags.go
+++ b/feature/featuretags/featuretags.go
@@ -160,6 +160,11 @@ var Features = map[FeatureTag]FeatureMeta{
 	"desktop_sessions": {Sym: "DesktopSessions", Desc: "Desktop sessions support"},
 	"doctor":           {Sym: "Doctor", Desc: "Diagnose possible issues with Tailscale and its host environment"},
 	"drive":            {Sym: "Drive", Desc: "Tailscale Drive (file server) support"},
+	"drive_magic": {
+		Sym:  "DriveMagic",
+		Desc: "Taildrive \"magic\" share (directory-name-encoded ACLs)",
+		Deps: []FeatureTag{"drive"},
+	},
 	"gro": {
 		Sym:  "GRO",
 		Desc: "Generic Receive Offload support (performance)",
diff --git a/feature/featuretags/featuretags_test.go b/feature/featuretags/featuretags_test.go
index c8a9f77ae..2ebd07666 100644
--- a/feature/featuretags/featuretags_test.go
+++ b/feature/featuretags/featuretags_test.go
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ func TestRequiredBy(t *testing.T) {
 	}{
 		{
 			in:   "drive",
-			want: setOf("drive"),
+			want: setOf("drive", "drive_magic"),
 		},
 		{
 			in:   "webclient",
diff --git a/ipn/ipnlocal/peerapi_drive.go b/ipn/ipnlocal/peerapi_drive.go
index d42843577..4aa56def0 100644
--- a/ipn/ipnlocal/peerapi_drive.go
+++ b/ipn/ipnlocal/peerapi_drive.go
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 
 	"tailscale.com/drive"
+	"tailscale.com/feature/buildfeatures"
 	"tailscale.com/tailcfg"
 	"tailscale.com/util/httpm"
 )
@@ -53,6 +54,20 @@ func handleServeDrive(hi PeerAPIHandler, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request)
 		return
 	}
 
+	var sharerLogin string
+	if buildfeatures.HasDriveMagic {
+		if nm := h.ps.b.NetMap(); nm != nil {
+			if up, ok := nm.UserProfiles[nm.User()]; ok {
+				sharerLogin = up.LoginName()
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	authz := drive.Authz{
+		PeerLogin:   strings.ToLower(h.peerUser.LoginName),
+		SharerLogin: strings.ToLower(sharerLogin),
+		Permissions: p,
+	}
+
 	fs, ok := h.ps.b.sys.DriveForRemote.GetOK()
 	if !ok {
 		h.logf("taildrive: not supported on platform")
@@ -86,7 +101,7 @@ func handleServeDrive(hi PeerAPIHandler, w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request)
 	}()
 
 	r.URL.Path = strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, taildrivePrefix)
-	fs.ServeHTTPWithPerms(p, wr, r)
+	fs.ServeHTTPWithPerms(authz, wr, r)
 }
 
 // parseDriveFileExtensionForLog parses the file extension, if available.