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Server 2003 Disconnected Network Drive

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by ctmoore1998 1 view

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I have a Server in which 2 of 5 mapped shares are shown as "Disconnected Network Drive" If you double click on the share you can access the data. If you right mouse and choose 'disconnect' You get the error msg 'Network connection could not be found' If you go to a cmd prompt and do a net use the 2 disconnected shares are not listed if you try either a net use F: /d /y you get a network connection could not be found a net use * /d /y successfully disconnects the other 3 shares. If you then try a net use F: \server\share you get the error msg 'local device name already in use' Have search MS and internet for a solution can anyone help me clear the disconnected network drives???

37 replies

by ctmoore1998

Please read Question completely. Also see comment. What I am trying to do is correct / fix the network drive F: and G: both drives show up as disconnected. Shares accessible but cannot really disconnect or delete mapping. NET USE F: /D returns network connection not found as I said in question

by ctmoore1998

You can't unmap the share. the share F: won't go away. As I said if you try to disconnect you get a 'network connection could not be found' error You can map share as another drive letter but I am trying to fix/remove/ remap the F: and G: drives

by ctmoore1998

I also notice that if I go into the tools and attempt to map a drive and pull down the drive list that F: and G: do not show up as drive letter options . I compared this to another 2003 server and these drives show up. Could the server somehow have F: and G: tagged as local drives???? First avail drive letter (other than B) is H:

by sgt_shultz

you are really not giving us much to go on. if you did search ms, what did you think of the articles and solutions you found there? we could guess and guess what might work for you. how about if you tell us what you have tried.
i think you are onto something with the local drives theory. did you have some usb or firewire drives on the server before.
if me, i might plug in a drive, see what letter it picks up.
this seems to be a bug in windows 2003. you might consider contacting ms about this directly.
i do not believe you posted what sp level you are on? i think i did read your post and comments in entirety...

by ctmoore1998

It is 2003 server base sp 1 not installed as some software vendors will not give the go ahead on SP1 installation. I have tried all the things that I mentioned in the question. As well as putting comments and pauses in the logon script to verify that the correct script is running and not a cached script somewhere. I have searched the registry for network drive lists and avail drive lists and have not been able to find either in the registry. Does anyone know where windows keeps the network drive information???

by blackcurrant

Hi

I think sgt shultz may be correct. I have experienced a similar issue with a laptop. A user had connected a usb device to it and then was unable to do anything with a mapped drive. Rebooting the laptop solved the problem as it reset the machine. Have you tried rebooting?

Good luck

by bfilmfan

And actually you didn't do what I suggested.

Have you UNMPAPPED all shares and then REMAPPED them from the My Computer, Tools, Disconnect Network Drive. And then perform a MAP network drive.

Is this server having drives mapped via a login script? Have you disabled the login script?

by collignond

What has happened is the visuals shop a disconnected drive, the internals have a connected drive. that will account for not being able to disconect it, as it seems disconnected, you can not use the drive letter as the connection is actualy there.

What you can do is to press F5 a couple of times and see if the dirve shows up as connected, if not double click on the drive to access it then press F5 a coouple of times to ensure the drive is actualy present click on the BACK button and then press F5 again, I have tested this procedure and seems to work fine.

by klb

I have come across the same problem on three of my workstations. The drive map is named as 'Disconnected Network Drive', the data is there and accessible but the drive letter is not an option if you try to remap it or it errors if you try to delete it. I have not been able to locate a solutioin yet.

by klb

Found this entry just recently:

Name: dave (by resourcepc)
Date: August 17, 2005 at 12:41:41 Pacific
Homepage: ResourcePC
Subject: disconnected network drive

Reply:
I found the problem, apparently since there were shortcuts on the desktop pointing to mapped drives, XP was trying to connect to the drive before the login script was able to finish. So XP thought that the drive was not there and marked it as disconnected. If I made the shortcuts using a UNC path, the problem with disconnected network drives went away.

Waiting to see the results.

by bari.a.zavacki

I came across the same issue today. I'm using Server2003 and a login script. Exact same symptoms described above. The desktop shortcut did not work for me. I started to think it was profile related. Then I searched the registry and found my G: drive hard coated under HKey_users default, network . I deleted it, but it came back again. So I think I'm close.. but I don't know how to get rid of it....Any thoughts?

by lertsa

It probably has something to do with the account you used when connecting to these resources. I had a similar problem with an integration software, except the data could not be accessed at first - only after I logged in and started the software with the same username as the resource had.

When I'm using the integration software to 'net use' drives, it creates this "Disconnected Network Drive" that cannot be seen or deleted by manually started 'net use'. The software and command prompt use different system accounts and thus cannot be meddled with the other. However, I CAN delete the DND with the same software it was created with.

So the mappings are probably created some other way than the working ones, try to solve it from there... hope this didn't confuse you =)

by ben

I have resolved an identical issue at the systems of 2 clients of mine, one with XP Pro clients connetcing to an SBS 2000 server, the other with XP Pro clients connecting to a pair of Windows 2003 Std servers. Any drive letter referenced by a desktop shortcut would display as "Disconnected Network Drive" as the type as well as volume name of the drive. The icon for the drive would not show a red X.
The resolution was related to the recent upgrade at both of these environments to Symantec Antivirus Corp 10.0. Symantec recognizes this issue and has a posted KB with a workaround at the link below. If you have recently upgraded to SAV 10, this is very likely your resolution:

http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/ent-security.nsf/4c7874c886a9bb0c88256fc700654267/f45ceefbf4e6d7bc88257019006dfaef?OpenDocument&src=bar_sch_nam

by ted

I have found that if you go to a command line and enter the "net use /persistent:no" command and then reboot the PC, the issue does not seem to come back with same user. The answer dealing with the shortcuts on the desktops trying to remap remmebered drive letters seems right on the mark. I have users that go from one site to the next and the two sites have the same mappings, just to different servers and when the migrate from one site to another, this issue will come up. I'm thinking about scripting it in the login script, but haven't found a command that will do it yet.

by rocco_lca

I have the same exact problem. I basically setup a schedule task to call a vbs script to do some backups for me... A drive gets mapped during this process and then gets deleted after the files get copied to that share. When the script is finished it is supposed to delete that mapping, but it never does. Now i've tried manually.. but same results.. can't delete it. I tried all cmds... but still coming up short. I mean I can do an if than in my script for if that drive letter is alread taken... but it's just going to fill up. Yes reboot fixes the problem. But I just can't reboot my 25 DC's every day. Come on guys... what the hell is going on??? PLEASE HELP!

by fneuner

I had the same problem on all of my XP client computers. It was driving me up a wall.

I finally uninstalled this CRAP called Symantec AntiVirus, and low and behold all workd as advertised.

Man, I hate Symantec with a passion by now.
Sorry if you are a 'Symantec' guy, but I hate that company and what it stands for.

Many thanks for the excellent answers.

Frank

by bgmiller

I have been having the same problem.

This is what Symantec has to say about it:
"This problem has been reported to Symantec Technical Support. At this time, we do not know the exact cause or factors that contribute to this problem. We will update this document when new information or a solution is available."

Gotta love it. I'm going to try the desktop shortcut approach.

by mikegrobusky

I have run into the same situation. The drive letters were originally mapped by a 'net use r: \\servername\sharename /persistent:no'. The 'disconnected drive' would not go away. Added a 'net use r: /delete' to the login script just above the mapping statements which DID make the disconnected drive disappear. The new r: mapping did take effect and was able to run the application. Like you, I searched the registy and was unable to find the network drive mapping table.
MG

by dclay2112

Go to the link posted in answer 9. After searching for what seems like an eternity, I finally got the answer. Thanks big time, Ben!

by henry-m

In our environment I found for this specific server the script which maps the drives were applied through GPO, but to Computer Configuration rather than user.
As a result the batch file which mapps the drives were applied before user logs on and appeared as disconnected, later when user logs since s/he has access right it works.

So the policy should be changed.

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