Windows 95 DFS Client Switches Drive Mappings to DFS Shares

 Last reviewed: February 27, 1998
Article ID: Q181088
The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Microsoft Windows 95 OEM Service Release version 2
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0

SYMPTOMS

When you map drive letters to multiple Distributed File System (DFS) network shares from a Windows 95 DFS client, and then change to different drives and folders within those shares from a command prompt, the drive letter mappings may be switched.

For example, if drive X is mapped to Share1, and drive Y is mapped to Share2, the drive letters may be switched so that drive X is mapped to Share2, and drive Y is mapped to Share1.

CAUSE

This problem may occur if either of the following conditions exist:

  • There are multiple DFS shares on different servers.
  • There are multiple DFS root volumes that contain mappings to same-named DFS leaf objects on different servers.

RESOLUTION

This issue is resolved by the following updated file for Windows 95 and Windows 95 OEM Service Releases 2 (OSR2): 

   DFS.VXD  version 4.10.1686  dated 2/6/98 7:26pm  18,147 bytes

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Microsoft Windows 95 and Microsoft Windows 95 OEM Service Releases 2 (OSR2). An update to address this problem is now available, but is not fully regression tested and should be applied only to computers experiencing this specific problem. Unless you are severely impacted by this specific problem, Microsoft does not recommend implementing this update at this time. Contact Microsoft Technical Support for additional information about the availability of this update.

MORE INFORMATION

If drive letters are mapped to DFS shares on two different servers and you change to a folder on the first drive letter and then change drives to the second drive letter, the second drive letter may be mapped to the share that the first drive letter was mapped to.

For example:

  1. Drive X is mapped to \\<server1>\<share1>, and drive Y is mapped to \\<server2>\<share2>.

  2. At a command prompt, change to X:\<folder1>.

  3. Change to drive Y.

  4. Change to Y:\<folder1> (<folder1> exists only on drive X [\\<server1>\<share1>]).

  5. Drive Y is now mapped to \\<server1>\<share1>.

If drive letters are mapped to DFS root shares on two different servers, and each share contains a DFS volume mapping that points to same-named DFS leaf shares on two other servers, the DFS volume object on one DFS root share may display the contents of the DFS leaf share mapped to the other DFS volume object when you change to a different folder.

For example:

  1. Drive X is mapped to \\<server1>\<DFSRoot1>, and drive Y is mapped to \\<server1>\<DFSRoot2>.

  2. \\<server1>\<DFSRoot1> contains <folder1>, which is mapped to the DFS leaf share \\<server3>\Public.

  3. \\<server1>\<DFSRoot2> contains <folder2>, which is mapped to the DFS leaf share \\<server4>\Public.

  4. When you type "dir x:\<folder1>" (without quotation marks) at a command prompt, the contents of \\<server3>\Public is displayed as expected.

  5. When you type "dir y:\<folder2>" (without quotation marks) at a command prompt, the contents of \\<server3>\Public is displayed instead of the contents of \\<server4>\Public.

W95QFE 
Keywords          : osr2 win95 winnt kbenv kbnetwork kbfixlist
Version           : WINDOWS:95; WINNT:4.0
Platform          : WINDOWS winnt
Issue type        : kbprb

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Last reviewed: February 27, 1998
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