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Using Windows 95 with MS Client and Trying to Map to a Server as a Different User

Keywords:   w95adddrive	 POLEDIT   501: local name is already connected

Question:

I am trying to attach and map to a Novell server as user Smith, from a Windows 95 machine, with the Microsoft Client (rather than the Novell Client). I want to map a drive to the server, and log in as someone other than Smith or Guest. I can not do this manually, so how can WinBatch do this for me using the w95AddDrive function? When I try to use it, I get the "local name is already connected" error message.

If I manually map a drive from Windows NT, I am not asked what my user name is, I am only prompted for a password. Win 95 assumes that I want to log on as Smith or the Guest user. If Smith is not a valid user on the server, and I don't know the Guest user password, I can not do this. The command shown gives me an ACCESS DENIED error. I am positive that PMQUSER with password PMQUSER1 is valid. Why can't I do this? PLEASE HELP ! 

w95AddDrive("PMQUSER","PMQUSER1","\\servername\Projmgmt","P:",@false)

Answer:

First things to check:
  1. Make sure the P: drive is not already mapped.
  2. Make sure the PMQUSER has network access
  3. Make sure the case is correct.
  4. Can you log onto a workstation with this ID/Password
Unlike NT, Win95 will NOT let you logon as a different user. You logon ONCE to the system and that's it. Windows 95 with the Microsoft Client can only support ONE network user name. This is NOT a limitation of WinBatch but of Windows 95 with the Microsoft Client. NT doesn't have this limitation. Note that if you were mapping to a Novell server, with the Netware client from Novell using our Netware extenders, you *could* log in as a different user.

But like a lot of things in Windows95, there are ways to get around it. What you have to do is use the POLEDIT program (your Admin should have setup a policy for you) to create/change the policy for one workstation.

  1. First, find out your workstation name. An easy way to do this is with the NET CONFIG command. Look for computer name \\computername.

  2. Once you have this information, get your admin to add a new computer with your EXACT computer name. In order to get the old settings copied in, you highlight the default computer and do an Edit, Copy. Then highlight the new computer you created and do an Edit, Paste. You will be asked if you want to paste the default computer information into the new computer, say yes.

  3. Now you have to change a setting to allow TWO different logins (one to Novell and one to Win95). Click on Network, then Microsoft Client for Windows Networks. Now enable (check) the box for Logon to Windows NT.

  4. Save the policy changes and reboot your workstation. You will see the old Novell login prompt as usual but after a time (up to a minute) you will see a prompt asking you which username and domain you want to login to WindowsNT with.

The thing to remember is that you can logon only ONCE, as a particular user. If you want to logon as another user, you have to reboot and restart the system. This is a bit of a pain at times, but it is also extremely handy to do this as well.

I have been using this configuration for almost two years now and it still works well. 

Article ID:   W13555

Filename:   w95AddDrive to Server with Different User Name.txt