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Solved: Windows 11 Mapped Drive Not Showing Up
Have you encountered Windows 11 mapped drive not showing up issue? If the mapped drive doesn’t show in File Explorer or doesn’t show all folders/files, you can read this article to find fixes for this issue.
By Yuka Updated on March 22, 2024
What Is a Mapped Drive?
A mapped drive is just a shortcut to a drive that is physically located on another computer. This shortcut looks like a shortcut to a local hard drive (such as the C drive) and is assigned its own drive letter, but all files in the mapped drive are actually stored physically on another computer.
It's similar to a shortcut on your desktop, such as a shortcut to open a picture file in a Picture folder, but used to access something from another computer. Mapped drives can be used to access resources on different computers on the local network, as well as files on websites or FTP servers.
What Causes Mapped Network Drive Not Showing Up?
Win 10 Explorer not showing network drives
“I have 2 PCs and 2 laptops connected on my home network, all running Win 10 and up until a few weeks ago, everything worked fine. Have not added any new software or changed any settings unless inadvertently. Basically, it was working in the morning and not working later in the day. Recently, all three other machines can see my PC as a network drive, and can access it. However, on my PC, the Network listing shows as empty.
- Question from TenForums
Many people map their folders when they want to permanently access a folder on another computer, network, or server. Unfortunately, mapped drives don't always work the way we would like them to, and some people may experience issues with mapped network drives not showing up. This issue mainly has the following symptoms:
- You can't see the network drive under File Explorer.
- You can see the network drive under File Explorer but it doesn't show all folders/files.
When your shared drive does not show up on Windows 11, how to fix it? Read on to find the solutions.
How to Fix Windows 11 Mapped Drive Not Showing Up
When your mapped network drives are not showing up on Windows 11, here are 3 things you can try to fix the issue and then let you successfully access files on another PC.
👉 Method 1. Repair Network Drive Not Showing in File Explorer
👉 Method 2. Configure Proxy and SMB to Better Recognize the Network Drive
👉 Method 3. Fix Mapped Network Drive Not Showing All Files/Folders
Mapped Drive Not Showing Up Quick FixYou can access files on one computer from another with mapping drive with the best free file sync software.
Method 1. Repair Network Drive Not Showing in File Explorer
Microsoft uses User Account Control (UAC) in its Windows Vista and later operating systems. This mechanism can notify the user whether the application is authorized to use the hard disk and system files, to help prevent malicious programs from damaging the system.
However, because of UAC, a Shell running with standard user privileges cannot view mapped drives configured by applications running with administrator privileges. This may be the reason of the mapped network drive not showing issue. In this case, you can use the following workaround:
- Press Windows + R to open the Run dialog. Type Regedit and press Enter key to open Registry Editor.
- Locate and then right-click the registry subkey to create a new DWORD Value:
▶ HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
- Name the new value EnableLinkedConnections and then right click it to modify the Value data to 1. This will enable the "administrator in Admin Approval Mode" user type and all other User Account Control (UAC) policies.
- Click OK to save the new value and then exit Registry Editor. Then, restart the computer.
Method 2. Configure Proxy and SMB to Better Recognize the Network Drive
If the above method did not work, you could try the other two methods to see your Windows recognize the network drive better:
▶ Configure the Network Proxy Settings in Windows 11
- Press Windows + I to open Settings. Then navigate to Network & Internet -> Proxy.
- Here you can add a script to manually configure the proxy so it can be managed easily.
▶ Turn on the SMB Features in Windows 11
- Type programs and features in the search box and click Turn Windows features on or off to open Windows Features window.
- Scroll down to find the features that started with SMB. You need to make sure that all SMB folders were checked here. Then click OK.
- Reboot the computer so that the changes can take effect.
Method 3. Fix Mapped Network Drive Not Showing All Files/Folders
If your Windows 11 mapped drive not showing all folders/files, the reason may be that the folders/files are hidden on the NAS drives, including mapped network drive and network drive. To show them normally, please refer to the following step.
- Press Windows + E to open File Explorer.
- Click on View tab -> Show -> Hidden Items.
Once you have finished this process, all hidden drives, folders, and files should appear in their original location.
Quick Fix for Windows 11 Mapped Drive Not Showing Up
As mentioned earlier, many users map their folders, files or drives just to be able to access files on one computer from another. If you're stuck with a mapped network drive not showing up, don't get frustrated, here's a quicker solution - use the free powerful sync software, AOMEI Backupper Standard, to sync drives/files/folders from one computer to another without mapping them.
AOMEI Backupper- Complete sync features - It allows you to sync files/folders to multiple destinations, including network drive, NAS, cloud storage, external drive, etc.
- Auto sync - It enables you to create automatic sync with its Schedule feature, which helps to get changes regularly by syncing files daily, weekly, or monthly.
- Multiple folder sync - It allows you to sync multiple folders simultaneously, saving you from repetitive work.
100% SecureSteps to Access Files/Folders Without Mapping the Drive
In this section, I'll show you how to sync folders on your computer to a network location so you can access files from one computer to another. Before you start, you need to do some preparations:
¤ Create a new folder on the target Windows 11 computer where you originally wanted to map the drive and open Windows 11 File Sharing first. Change the folder network access to Everyone.
¤ Download AOMEI Backupper Standard on your source Windows 11 computer.
- Launch AOMEI Backupper, choose Sync -> Basic Sync subsequently.
Tips✍: Three other synchronization modes are also available in advanced editions.
✬ Real-Time Sync: This mode will automatically monitor the source directories that need to be synchronized in real time.
✬ Mirror Sync: This mode always keeps the files between the source directory and the target directory the same. Any changed files in the target will be deleted.
✬ Two-Way Sync: Any changes in the source or destination directory will be synced with each other.
- Click +Add Folder and select the folder you want to access on the other computer.
- Click Add Share or NAS Devices and enter the destination network path for the new folder you created earlier. Type username and password if it prompts.
- Confirm all your settings and click on Start Sync to perform the operation.
Besides syncing files to a network location, syncing or backing up files to the cloud is also a good way to keep data safe. AOMEI Backupper provides users with their own cloud drive - AOMEI Cloud. When you you sign up for an AOMEI account, it will give you 1TB of free storage space for 15 days.
FAQs about Mapping Network Drive on Windows 11
#1. Why are my mapped network drives not displaying?
Check the network connectivity and ensure that the network drive is still accessible. If there are connection issues, try reconnecting the drive or restarting your computer. You can also check if the mapped drives are visible in the Command Prompt, by using the "net use" command to see all the mapped drives on your device.
#2. How do I enable mapped drives in Windows 11?
To map network drive on Windows 11, you can go to File Explorer > click on More > select Map network drive, and follow the on-screen guide to finish the mapping process.
#3. Mapped drive is visible in File Explorer but shows as inaccessible. What should I do in Windows 11?
Verify the network permissions and credentials. Re-enter the correct username and password when prompted, and ensure that the user has the necessary permissions to access the shared drive.
#4. After updating Windows 11, my mapped drives are gone. How do I recover them?
Windows updates may reset network settings. Remap the drives using the same process as before. If the issue persists, check for compatibility updates for your network drivers.
Final Words
This article has provided you with 3 methods to fix the issue of Windows 11 mapped hard drive not showing up. You can choose to fix this problem or choose another quick method provided in this article to access files on other computers.
AOMEI Backupper can provide comprehensive protection for your computer, including operating system and data. If you have used it to create a system backup in advance, you can quickly restore your Windows 11 computer to normal after you encounter some system problems, such as Windows 11 stuck on preparing Windows.
