Network drive net. Map a network drive. Ways to map a network drive

Net use is a command to connect to network shares or display information about computer connections. The command also manages persistent network connections.

If you have a local network configured at your home or office, and network folders are also used, then for the most convenient use of them, it is recommended to configure network drives. Such a network drive will not differ in any way from other drives (for example, C or D) that are used on your computer. The only difference among these drives is the low speed of writing or reading data.

Command Options

Net use is a command that is designed to make connections to a network share or to display information regarding computer connections. Net use also manages persistent network connections. A command called with no parameters retrieves a list of network connections.

The Net use command is used in batch files and scripts. Let's take a look at the main Net use command line options:

1. Device name. To use the name of the device to which you want to map a network drive, use the "*" character;
2. Computer name. The name to which the resource currently belongs;
3. Resource name. The name of the shared resource;
4. volume. Is the name of the volume if the share is a Net Ware server;
5. password. Password for making connections to the resource;
6. "*". This character is a password prompt;
7. /user:<домен>\<пользователь>. A string for specifying the username under whose rights it is necessary to connect;
8. /home. The function is designed to connect the user's home directory;
9. /delete. Connection cancellation;
10. /persistent: . Designation of the need to restore connections during subsequent user registrations in the system.

In order to connect a network drive, you must:

1. Press the "Start" button, then select the "Run" command;
2. Enter the command "cmd" in the "Open" field;
3. Enter - net use x: your computer name (or IP address), resource name.

The use of the command and its nuances

The net use command, when creating a network drive, returns the current status of each connection, along with the name of the drive, the UNC name of the share, and the type of network. The most common type of network is Microsoft Windows Network, but, if the computer uses a different operating system, then this will be reflected in the column labeled Network. For example, if the user will work with the client software, NovellNetWare and will connect the drive to a server called NetWare, in the Network column it will say Net Ware. Thanks to the Net Use command, it is possible to use batch files to create shared resources. With the Net Use command to assign resources to users, you can use command files in the process of registering a network drive.

Differences

The difference between the Net Use command and the Windows graphical interface is unlimited connection to shared folders. To connect to a subdirectory that is not shared, you can type the following command on a shared drive: "netuse f:\". This feature can be quite useful in most situations where the operation of a network drive and its connection is important. For example, you can share an entire drive, and set up connections for users to individual directories using netuse. From a security point of view, this approach is questionable, so if you need to use this feature, you should make sure that the permissions for a specific folder that has not been shared are correct. Assigning resources will make it easier for you to access the appropriate program folders and disk data. If you are a user working in a corporate database, you can create a login script. If you learn how to use the command line, as well as create batch files, then you can distribute them to other users. This will make the job much easier. Batch files can also come in handy in a peer-to-peer network in order to connect to resources or when performing maintenance tasks on other computers.

If you need to connect a network drive, you can easily do it using this article.

Hello.

I will outline a typical situation: there are several computers connected to a local network. It is required to share some folders so that all users from this folder can work with them. local network.

To do this, you need:

1. "share" (make a shared access) desired folder on the desired computer

2. on computers in the local network, it is advisable to connect this folder as a network drive (so as not to look for it every time in the "network environment").

Actually, how to do it all will be described in this article (the information is relevant for Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10).

1) Opening shared access to a folder on the local network (folder sharing)

To be able to share a folder, you must first configure Windows accordingly. To do this, go to the panel Windows controls at the following address: " Control Panel\Network and Internet\Network and Sharing Center» (see Fig. 1).

Then open the " Change advanced sharing options«.

Rice. 1. Network and Sharing Center

1. private (current profile);
2. all networks;
3. guest or public.

It is necessary to open each tab in turn and set the parameters as in Fig.: 2, 3, 4 (see below, clickable pictures).

Rice. 2. Private (current profile).

Rice. 3. All networks

Rice. 4. Guest or public

Now there is only allow access to desired folders. This is done very simply:

1. Find the desired folder on the disk, right-click on it and go to its properties (see Fig. 5);
2. Next, open the " Access"And press the button" Sharing"(As in Fig. 5);
3. Then add the user " guest"And give him rights: either read-only or read and write (see Fig. 6).

Rice. 5. Opening a shared folder (many people call this procedure simply “sharing”)

Rice. 6. File Sharing

By the way, to find out which folders are already shared on the computer, just open the explorer, then in the tab " Network"Click on the name of your computer: then you should see everything that is open for public access (see Fig. 7).

Rice. 7. Shared folders (Windows 8)

2. How to map a network drive in Windows

In order not to climb into the network environment every time, not to open tabs once again - you can add any folder on the network as a disk in Windows. This will slightly increase the speed of work (especially if you often use a network folder), as well as simplify the use of such a folder for novice PC users.

And so, to connect a network drive - right-click on the icon " My computer (or This computer)” and in the pop-up menu, select the function “ map network drive” (see Fig. 8. In Windows 7, this is done in the same way, only the icon “ my computer" will be on the desktop).

Rice. 9. Windows 8 - This PC

After that you need to choose:

1. drive letter (any free letter);
2. specify the folder that should be made a network drive (click the "Browse" button, see Fig. 10).

Rice. 10. Mapping a network drive

On fig. 11 shows folder selection. By the way, after choosing, you will only have to press “OK” 2 times - and you can start working with the disk!

Rice. 11. Browse folders

If everything was done correctly, then in " My computer (in this computer)» A network drive with the name of your choice will appear. You can use it in almost the same way as if it were yours. HDD(see fig. 12).

The only condition: the computer on the disk of which the shared folder is located must be turned on. And, of course, the local network should work ...

Rice. 12. This computer (network drive mapped).

Very often people ask what to do if the folder cannot be shared - Windows writes that access is impossible, a password is required ... In this case, most often, they simply did not configure the network accordingly (the first part of this article). After disabling password protection, problems, as a rule, do not arise.

Good job 🙂

Shared folder to network drive Windows 10

So, how to map a network drive on Windows 10? We already know how to create, but it’s not very convenient to search the network environment for the desired shared folder, especially if there are a lot of computers. It's much easier to have it appear as a separate drive that appears alongside your "C" drive when the system boots.

For network connection hard drive on Windows 10, the first step is to allow file and folder sharing on the computer. To do this, right-click on the "Start" menu and go to "Network Connections"

Here in the left column click on "Change sharing settings"

• Enable network discovery
• Turn on file and printer sharing
• Let Windows manage the homegroup connection

Mapping a network drive Windows 10

This was the preparatory stage - now let's move on to the main question, how to map a Windows 10 network drive?
To do this, you need to open Explorer and in the left column, where the tree of drives and folders, find the link "My Computer" - right-click on it and select the item "Connect a network drive ...".

In the window that pops up after this, select the letter for our future network Windows disk, for example "X".

After selecting the folder, leave the "Restore at logon" checkbox so that after turning off the computer, you do not have to create it again every time. And click "OK".

Now, when you enter the explorer in the "Computer", among other system hard drives we will be able to see the "Z" drive in the "Network Location" section. you can get to it, provided that the computer on which this network drive-folder is located is turned on.

Mapping a network drive on Windows XP

The technique for connecting a network drive on Windows XP is similar to that already described above. Therefore, we will describe here the connection method directly from the "Network Neighborhood" section.

We go to "Start\u003e Network Places" and find the shared folder we need on one of the computers on the local network. Right-click on it and select the "Map network drive" menu item. You can also simply select the “Service” item in the top menu and select the same section.

Now if you go to "My Computer", you will see hard drives, as well as network folders connected as network drives, indicated by separate icons.

That's all. For those who still do not understand how, here is a video:

Thanks! Did not help

Today, when prices for computer equipment become more or less acceptable, acquire your own own computer every member of the family can. There is nothing to say about small and medium-sized enterprises, the use of several computers united in a single local network is a common thing in them. Naturally, in such conditions, users often have to exchange files in the process of work. Using removable portable drives for this is not very convenient, so developers operating systems was implemented such an opportunity as the creation of a network drive. In fact, this resource is a directory or a separately created logical partition, to which opens, i.e. hosts connected by a local network can connect. Very rarely, network drives on a home PC are created to be accessed from the global network, for example, when the machine is used as a mini-server, but mostly shared folders on cloud services are used to provide unified access to user files from the Internet.

Today we will learn how to create and add a network drive exactly on the local network. The main distributor is usually the administrator's computer, but it can also be any other PC on the network.

Sharing

It all starts with creating an ordinary folder with unusual properties. Our example resource will be called WorkFolder. Create a folder with a suitable name in the location you need, open its properties, switch to the "Access" tab and click the "Advanced settings" button.

In the new dialog box, check the checkbox "Open sharing ...", set, if necessary, the number of users simultaneously accessing it, and then click "Permissions". By default, everyone has read-only permission, if you want other users to be able to edit files on the disk and write their data to it, change the permissions accordingly. Save the settings one by one.

At the last stage of saving in the properties window, you should see the message “There is a shared access” and the path itself, starting with two slashes.

Now, by clicking the share button, in the window that opens, add users who can access the shared folder on their PCs, otherwise they will receive a network error, the description of which is presented in the screenshot below.

At this stage, the basic configuration of the network drive is completed. The next step is to test network discovery. If your network is defined as a private network, discovery should be enabled by default, but if it is a public network, it will most likely need to be opened. Run the command in the Run window control /name Microsoft.NetworkAndSharingCenter, and then click the "Change advanced sharing settings" link on the left.

Activate the "Turn on network discovery" radio button in the current profile and apply the changes. To be able to connect a network drive, the manipulations done should be enough, if the latter then does not want to connect, try changing the network mode.

Adding a network drive

You can connect the newly created resource in many ways, including through the familiar CMD console, but we will consider the simplest option. Right-click on the "This PC" shortcut (no matter where) and select "Map Network Drive" from the menu.

In the window of the wizard that has started, select a letter for the future resource, be sure to check the “Use other credentials” checkbox, otherwise other users will not even be able to see it on their computers.

Through the browse button, select the folder for which you set up sharing.

After clicking the "Finish" button, Windows will ask for the current username and password.

The corresponding section should also become visible in the main workspace of this computer.

To disable a network resource, right-click on it and select "Disable" from the menu. You can also select it with the mouse and select "Disconnect Network Drive" from the Network ribbon menu.

Connect by name or IP address

There are also other ways to connect the created and configured shared resource, but they are less convenient. For example, instead of searching for it through browsing, you can specify its symbolic or IP address in the field of the connection window. The symbolic address is specified in the properties of the folder, IP in the properties of the adapter "Local Area Connection" (parameter IPv4 address).

The same address can be obtained from the command line by executing the command ipconfig /all(the data will be in the section of the same name).

Using the command line

And finally, let's see how to map a network drive in Windows 7/10 using the CMD command line or the PowerShell console, perhaps this method will seem even faster to someone. The general command syntax looks like

net use \\ComputerName\ShareName[\volume]
username]

Here drive is a free drive letter, and \ComputerName\ShareName– path to the shared folder. Let's connect our WorkFolder folder from the desktop as a network drive, for which we execute the following command in the line running with administrator rights:

net use Z: //DESKTOP-8CS7OLG/WorkFolder /user:comp 11111

Parameter /user is required so that the system does not request authorization. The string element "comp" in this example is the computer's administrator name, and "11111" is his current password. To make a network drive connected permanently, and not just during an open session, you can add the switch to the end of the command /persistent:yes.

To disable the disk, run the command net use z: /delete, where z is the drive letter.

Unfortunately, in the Windows 10 we tested, when connected with the net use command, the corresponding volume was not displayed in the “This PC” section, remaining still accessible from the Explorer navigation bar.

So, now you know how to set up a network drive, but these are, of course, only general recommendations. Practice shows that in the process of connecting such resources, one often encounters various errors, of which the most common is “The network path was not found”. Causes of failures may be problems with the settings network adapters, with drivers, network security settings, and so on. In such cases, problems are usually resolved privately based on the identified cause.

Press " Service"- "map network drive"

OverviewOK".

You can change the drive letter if it is already taken by clicking Disk and select a letter. When finished, click " Ready".

As a result, you will see a mapped network drive.

How to Map a Network Drive in Windows 7.

Before connecting a network drive on Windows7, you need to check the network settings, for this go to " Start" - "Control Panel" -"or click on the button network connection on the taskbar and select "Network and Sharing Center".

In the opened window Network and Sharing Center look at which network is used (in this example - Working) click on "".

In the profile you're using (home, work, or shared), check to see if Network discovery if disabled, enable. Save your changes.

Now you can proceed directly to connecting a network drive, for this go to A computer, press " map network drive".

The Network Drive Mappings window opens. Press " Overview", select the computer on which the network folder is located, click on it and select the desired folder, click " OK". You can change the drive letter, to do this, click on the box highlighted in yellow and select a different letter. At the end, click " Ready".

In addition to this method, to map a network drive, you can

How to Map a Network Drive in Windows 8.

Before connecting a network drive on Windows8, you need to check the network settings, for this go to "Control Panel" - "Network and Sharing Center" or click on the Network Connection button on the Taskbar and select "Network and Sharing Center".

In the window that opens, look at which network is used (in this example, Public), click on " Change advanced sharing options".

In the profile you are using (private, guest, or public), make the necessary changes, namely:

Turn on network discovery;

Save your changes.

Now you can connect a network drive, for this click on the shortcut A computer select tab "A computer"-"map network drive".

The Network Drive Mappings window opens. Press " Overview", select the computer on which the network folder is located, click on it and select the desired folder, click " OK". You can change the drive letter, to do this, click on the field highlighted in yellow and select a letter. At the end, click " Ready".

As a result, a network drive will appear.

Mapping a network drive using a script in Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8.

To connect/disconnect a network drive and a network printer, use the command net use, here is the syntax of this command:

NET USE
[device_name | *] [\\computername\sharename[\volume] [password | *]]
Username]
Username]

[ | ]

NET USE (devicename | *) [password | *] /HOME

NET USE

The NET USE command connects a computer to a share or disconnects a computer from a share. When the command is used without parameters, a list of connections for this computer is displayed.

device_name Assigns a name to connect to a resource or specifies a device to disconnect from. Two types of device names are used: disk devices(letters D: to Z:) and printers (LPT1: to LPT3:). If you enter an asterisk (*) instead of a device name, the next unoccupied name is assigned.
\\computername Specifies the name of the computer that controls the share. If spaces are used in the computer name, you must enclose this entire parameter in quotation marks, along with two backslashes (\\). The computer name can be 1 to 15 characters long.
\resource_name Specifies the network name of the share.
\volume Specifies the NetWare volume on the server. To access NetWare servers, NetWare Client Services (Windows Workstations) or NetWare Gateway Service (Windows Server) must be installed and running.
password Specifies the password required to access the share.
* Specifies a password prompt. When entering into command line the password is not displayed.
/USER Specifies a different username with which to establish the connection.
domain name Specifies a different domain. If the domain is not specified, then the current domain used when logging on to the network is assumed.
Username Specifies the username for logging on to the network.
/SMARTCARD Specifies that this connection uses smart card credentials.
/SAVECRED Specifies that the username and password should be saved. This parameter is ignored if the command does not prompt for a username and password.
/HOME Connects the user to the home directory.
/DELETE Cancels a network connection and removes it from the list of permanent connections.
/PERSISTENT Controls the use of persistent network connections. The default is the last parameter used.
YES Saves established connections and restores them the next time you log on to the network.
NO Does not save established connections or subsequent connections, as a result, they will not be restored at the next login. Use the /DELETE option to remove persistent connections.

An example of using the net use command:

net use z: /delete
net use z: \\computer1\Shared Folder
net use /Persistent:Yes

net use z: /delete - command to unmount network drive Z.

computer1\Shared Folder - path to the shared folder (network folder)

net use /Persistent:Yes- on reboot, restore mounted disks (if you specify NO, reset the settings).

In order to create a script, create a text file, write the necessary commands, save. Change file extension from TXT to BAT. Now you can simply run the BAT file with two mouse clicks and all the prescribed commands will be executed.