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After many attempts to remove two mapped drives, they are still there.

Jobee 1 Kenobi 1 Reputation point
2025-12-22T02:49:04.68+00:00

Sorry about the formatting - I had it nice and orderly on my computer, but when copying it over the computer gremlins held onto the formatting.

From a DOS window:

C:>net use

New connections will be remembered.

 

Status       Local     Remote                    Network

 

Disconnected L:        \192.168.1.34\homes      Microsoft Windows Network

Disconnected R:        \192.168.1.34\homes      Microsoft Windows Network

The command completed successfully.

 

Then this:

C:\ net use l: /delete

The network connection could not be found.

More help is available by typing NET HELPMSG 2250.

Typing that gives this helpful message: The network connection could not be found.

 

Followed by this:

C:\ net use l: \192.168.1.34\homes

System error 85 has occurred.

The local device name is already in use.  

 

 

What I’ve tried so far:

1)    From Explorer: Right-click and disconnect the drives

a.      I get a popup error message: “This network connection does not exist.”

2)    From DOS window: With admin rights, net use l: /delete

a. The network connection could not be found. More help is available by typing NET HELPMSG 2250.

Typing that gives this helpful message: The network connection could not be found.

3)    From Task Manager: Restart explorer process and try step 2 again

a.      The mapped drives are still there.

4)    From Disk Management: No mapped drives are there. Not even after refreshing and rescanning the disks

5)    From PowerShell, Remove-PSDrive -Name l

a.      Remove-psdrive : Cannot find drive. A drive with the name l does not exist.

6)    From the registry: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\network:

a.      There are no mapped network drives listed in this folder

 

Does anyone have any ideas that don’t involve vise grips, a sledge hammer, or a propane torch?

Thanks,

Joe

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Internet and connectivity
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  1. Lucus-V 7,315 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-12-25T11:06:24.7366667+00:00

    Hi Jobee 1 Kenobi,
    Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum. I'm happy to help.

    Basically if the network drive was created automatically by the system, then it was done by user nt authority\system and it can't be deleted even by administrator. To delete it as nt authority\system, you can use PsExec for example:

    psexec -s -i cmd
net use L: /delete

    I hope that above information is helpful to you.

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  2. Jobee 1 Kenobi 1 Reputation point
    2025-12-22T02:59:01.0133333+00:00

    Um, I just responded to the AI answers, but I don't see that response here. Just saying...

    Joe

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  3. AI answer

    2025-12-22T02:49:15.4633333+00:00

    It seems like you're facing a persistent issue with mapped drives that are not responding to the usual deletion commands. Here are a few suggestions that might help you resolve this issue:

    1. Check for Active Sessions: Sometimes, if there are active sessions using the mapped drives, they might not be released properly. You can check this using the net session command in the command prompt to see if there are any active sessions that might be holding onto the drives.
    2. Use the net use Command with the Correct Syntax: Ensure that you are using the correct syntax when attempting to delete the drives. You might try using the full UNC path instead of the drive letter: 
         net use \192.168.1.34\homes /delete
    3. Disconnect from the Network: If possible, temporarily disconnect from the network and then try to delete the mapped drives again. Sometimes, network connections can interfere with the deletion process.
    4. Registry Cleanup: Since you mentioned checking the registry and not finding the drives under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\network, you might want to check HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MountPoints2 for any remnants of the mapped drives. If you find entries related to the drives, you can delete them.
    5. Restart the Computer: A simple restart can sometimes clear up issues with network connections and mapped drives.
    6. Check Group Policy Settings: If your computer is part of a domain, check if there are any Group Policy settings that might be re-mapping the drives upon login. You can use gpresult /h gpresult.html to generate a report and check for any policies affecting drive mappings.

    If none of these methods work, you may need to consider more advanced troubleshooting or consulting with your network administrator for further assistance.

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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