"The network folder specified is currently mapped using a different user name and password", when trying to connect to a drive remotely.

Question

Original Title: The network folder specified is currently mapped using a different user name and password.__To connect using a different user name and password, first disconnect any existing mappings to this network share.

I am trying to connect to a drive remotely. I have clicked to map to the drive, entered the name of the drive, entered the login name/password for the computer it resides on and then it give me this error message:The network folder specified is currently mapped using a different user name and password. To connect using a different user name and password, first disconnect any existing mappings to this network share.

Answer 1

In Windows 7 Enterprise, I would like to point out that if you map \\server1\share1 as drive letter X using "user1" and "password1", then try to map \\server1\share2 (a different share) as drive letter Y using the same "user1" and "password1", and you click the "connect using different credentials" checkbox in the Map Network Drive dialog box and specify "user1" and "password1", you will get this INCORRECT ERROR MESSAGE that says "The network folder specified is currently mapped using a different user name and password". 

The message is wrong because:

1. The network folder specified (share2 in my example) is not mapped at all, and
2. the server ("server1" in my example) is already mapped (to a different drive letter and different share) using the SAME userid and password. 

The error message is wrong on two counts!

This baffled me for a while until I realized that once you have mapped to "server1" using those credentials, you can map to different shares on the same server without re-specifying the credentials.  This is NOT CLEAR from the "Map Network Drives" dialog box, which leads to users (like me, and I'm a programmer by trade) trying to enter the credentials again and getting this incorrect error message.

David Walker

Answer 2

Hi aggiegeo,

·        Were you able to connect to the drive earlier?

·        Do you remember making any changes prior to the issue?

·        Is this a partition on a different computer?

You may have to try connecting to the drive using a different IP (Internet Protocol) address.

You may refer to the following article and check if it helps.

Error message when you use user credentials to connect to a network share from a Windows-based computer: "The network folder specified is currently mapped using a different user name and password"

Regards,

Syed N – Microsoft Support

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Answer 3

Hi aggiegeog,

I responded above with a solution that should fix your problem. Please return to the thread and let us know if this has solved your problem.

 If the suggestion above solved your problem, click the “Mark As Answer” button at the bottom of the post. If not, please return and provide any additional details you have come across so that we can further troubleshoot the issue.

Regards,

Syed N – Microsoft Support

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Visit our **Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum** and let us know what you think.

Answer 4

This thread contains an unconfirmed solution by the original poster and has been left unanswered. Microsoft Support will no longer attempt to contact the original poster.

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Cody C

Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

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Answer 5

Thank you DWalker.

I had the same problem, and your answer solved it.

That error message makes no sense.