Mapping a Network Drive (Part I)
April 25, 2008 · Print This Article
It has come to my attention, from the many conversations I have with end-users, that the general population may not know how to map a drive. I through this phrase around fairly loosely when speaking to customers, because in today’s corporate and small business environments, network resources are becoming more prevalent and access to remote resources can be necessary.
What is a “mapped drive”? - A mapped drive is, in its simplest terms, is a virtual connection to media from another server or workstation on a network. Depending on you environment, you probably have “mapped drives” already on your computer without even knowing it, these drives probably point to a server on you network where all employees keep files. (a file server) These mapped drives are established when you log-in to your computer as part of a start-up script written by your administrator. Your administrator is just automating what you can do on your own, this type of automation helps employees become familiar with one resource point. (i.e. “I put the files you wanted on the Z: drive.”)
Why do we need mapped drives? - Good question, but there are lot of reasons. Mapped drives to file servers, for instance, centralize resources for groups of people, it helps standardize directory structure (easier to find files), and it is more efficient (power, hardware, reduces file duplicates), not to mention it is more easily managed. Without the ease of mapping drives, this type of network resource sharing may not exist.
How do I map a network drive? - Now comes the easy part. Mapping a drive is very simple and I will detail how, in the following steps:
1. Open My Computer
2. Click Tools > Map Network Drive
3. Choose a drive letter & Enter the resource path. (i.e. Drive Letter = Z: ; Resource Path = //accounting_server/invoices)
4. Click Finish.
Now when you look in My Computer you will notice an extra drive available besides your local drives
In Part II of mapping a network drive, we will explore a few more advanced options and I will show you how to automate it with a script.
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