The network drive problem seems to have resolved itself.
The network drive problem seems to have resolved itself.
I have been using my Win 11 computer with a local account, but today I decided to log in using an MS account.
I had three network drives mapped, all pointing to my NAS, each with different shares—everything was functioning properly. My NAS is a ReadyNas 102 and was configured for anonymous access, so I wasn’t expecting any authentication steps. It just worked fine.
Today I changed the method: I signed in with my MS account, created a PIN for logging into Win 11, and assumed everything was okay.
However, I noticed that my mapped drives stopped reconnecting automatically when I logged in to Windows. It displayed a message similar to “You can’t connect to the same share at the same time with different credentials.” I was puzzled—why would Windows insist on credentials if the NAS was set up for anonymous access?
To lighten the mood, I disconnected the three shares and reconfigured them. When I tried setting them up again, Windows Network Security prompted me to provide credentials. Since my NAS allowed anonymous connections, I assumed Windows was enforcing that requirement.
I entered my local username and password for Win 11 login, and it accepted. The next two maps didn’t ask for credentials, assuming they would reuse the information from the first setup. All shares worked until I rebooted, at which point they failed again with the same error message.
I suspected something might be confusing—my previous local account mapping could have caused issues.
So I logged back in with my local account, disconnected all the mapped drives, re-logged in with the Windows account, remapped the drives (the first one asked for credentials again, while the next two didn’t), and everything worked afterward.
Although I’m not experiencing any problems now, I’m still confused about what caused the issue.
Anyone have a simple explanation of what happened? What was the root cause?
Thanks in advance for your help.
I'm familiar with how Windows behaves with file shares lacking passwords or user accounts, especially during certain versions like Windows 10 and 11. There might be an issue in the Credential Manager—search for it, open Windows Credentials, and possibly remove the nas login entries before restarting the computer. After that, re-add the network drives and try logging in again to check if the problem persists. Also, verify that your network settings are correctly set to private if needed. Good luck!
Microsoft is planning to completely remove guest login capabilities. This change may cause some unusual behavior. They will also enforce SMB signing to enhance security, specifically to stop man-in-the-middle attacks from within your network. If you're experiencing such issues, it's likely there are more urgent concerns at play.
Most users have already disabled SMB signing on devices like the 11-year-old ReadyNAS because it significantly slows performance—around 75%. This makes sense since anonymous guest access with SMB signing is no longer supported. The push to implement both changes simultaneously suggests Microsoft is encouraging upgrading to newer NAS systems, requiring login credentials for access.
The most critical aspect of logging into Windows with a Microsoft account is the initial setup, when Windows Device Encryption (Bitlocker) is applied to your drives since 1703. Even on Home editions, Bitlocker is only available on Pro or Enterprise versions. This means your 48-digit recovery key won't function on Home, potentially leading to data loss.
Thanks for the update on the SMB access plans. Your NAS is quite old, and support has only been available about a year ago—so it might be possible to set it up with a standard Windows-compatible solution if they update their offerings. I’m okay with its current performance and behavior; it’s just simple access and a basic DNLA server with RAID 0.
You’re also certain about the BitLocker feature? That would be quite inconvenient, especially since you’ve logged in through MSA. I’m using Windows 11 Pro and have confirmed everything is still working fine—no BitLocker encryption on any drives.
Cheers.