Mapped drives problem

Hi there,
My system setup is as follows:-

Server: Windows 2003 Std server SP1
Workstations: Windows XP Pro based
All the pcs are connected to a switch which is then connected to an ADSL
Router.
Running Active Directory

Problem:
The are 3 mapped drives on the server which are shared by the workstations.

The pcs are turned on in the morning.They are authenticated and the server
lets them all log in.
Everyone can access all 3 mapped drives.So far, everything is fine.
However, if the mapped drives are not accessed for a period of time , say
more than 15 minutes or so,
connection is lost to the mapped drives.
The pcs are still used for other tasks such as word processing, surfing the
net and so on.The pcs are not idle.
When you click on the mapped drives,
(Note: there are no 'red' crosses on the mapped drives)
we get a message 'an error occured while reconnecting W to \\server\public
Microsoft Windows Network - The local device name is already in use.
The connection has not been restored.

We have to reboot the workstations to have access to the mapped drives.
Is there any way of fixing this problem??

Thanks

Anteaus

By default autodisconnect is 15 minutes. You may want to modify it. These links may help,

Mapping To modify idle time, at a command prompt using net config server /autodisconnect: minutes. For example, to set the Autodisconnect value to 30 minutes, ...
www.chicagotech.net/mapping.htm


windows faqs A: you can change autodisconnect time. For example, if you want to setup autodisconnect time to 30 minutes, do net config server /autodisconnect:30. ...
www.chicagotech.net/winfaqs.htm



Bob Lin, MS-MVP, MCSE & CNE
Networking, Internet, Routing, VPN Troubleshooting on http://www.ChicagoTech.net
How to Setup Windows, Network, VPN & Remote Access on http://www.HowToNetworking.com
"anteaus" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message news:3D1CE4A5-0821-44D0-AAA6-(E-Mail Removed)...
Hi there,
My system setup is as follows:-

Server: Windows 2003 Std server SP1
Workstations: Windows XP Pro based
All the pcs are connected to a switch which is then connected to an ADSL
Router.
Running Active Directory

Problem:
The are 3 mapped drives on the server which are shared by the workstations.

The pcs are turned on in the morning.They are authenticated and the server
lets them all log in.
Everyone can access all 3 mapped drives.So far, everything is fine.
However, if the mapped drives are not accessed for a period of time , say
more than 15 minutes or so,
connection is lost to the mapped drives.
The pcs are still used for other tasks such as word processing, surfing the
net and so on.The pcs are not idle.
When you click on the mapped drives,
(Note: there are no 'red' crosses on the mapped drives)
we get a message 'an error occured while reconnecting W to \\server\public
Microsoft Windows Network - The local device name is already in use.
The connection has not been restored.

We have to reboot the workstations to have access to the mapped drives.
Is there any way of fixing this problem??

Thanks

Anteaus

"anteaus" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:3D1CE4A5-0821-44D0-AAA6-(E-Mail Removed)...
> However, if the mapped drives are not accessed for a period of time , say
> more than 15 minutes or so,
> (Note: there are no 'red' crosses on the mapped drives)
> we get a message 'an error occured while reconnecting W to \\server\public
> Microsoft Windows Network - The local device name is already in use.
> The connection has not been restored.

The best thing you could do is get rid of Mapped Drives and stop using them.
No matter how for ahead you set the timeout,... they will still eventually
timeout and the same problem persists.

Use UNC Pathes instead. They can be simplified for the user by giving them
Shortcuts to the target. If you place the Shortcut inside their My Documents
the network location will just appear as a Folder within their My Documents.

--
Phillip Windell [MCP, MVP, CCNA]
www.wandtv.com
-----------------------------------------------------
Understanding the ISA 2004 Access Rule Processing
http://www.isaserver.org/articles/IS...cessRules.html

Troubleshooting Client Authentication on Access Rules in ISA Server 2004
http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...7/ts_rules.doc

Microsoft Internet Security & Acceleration Server: Guidance
http://www.microsoft.com/isaserver/t...dance/2004.asp
http://www.microsoft.com/isaserver/t...dance/2000.asp

Microsoft Internet Security & Acceleration Server: Partners
http://www.microsoft.com/isaserver/partners/default.asp

Deployment Guidelines for ISA Server 2004 Enterprise Edition
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/pro...isaserver.mspx
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