net use

Connects a computer to or disconnects a computer from a shared resource, or displays information about computer connections. The command also controls persistent net connections. Used without parameters, net use retrieves a list of network connections.

Map a network drive

To map a network drive, use the following command:

1net use X: \\<your>\<UNC>\<path>

To map a network drive with specific credentials (username and password), use the following command:

1net use X: \\<your>\<UNC>\<path> /user:<domain>\<username> <password>

Disconnect a network drive

To disconnect a network drive, use the following command:

1net use X: /delete

Replace "X" with the appropriate drive letter.

Registry

Mapped network drives are stored in the Windows Registry under the following key:

1HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Network

Each subkey represents a mapped network drive, with the drive letter as the subkey name. Inside each subkey, you will find various values related to the configuration of that mapped network drive.

Common values found within the subkeys:

RemotePath: A REG_SZ value that contains the UNC path of the mapped network drive (e.g., \server\share).

UserName: A REG_SZ value that stores the username used to authenticate with the shared resource, if any.

ProviderName: A REG_SZ value that contains the name of the network provider responsible for managing the connection (e.g., "Microsoft Windows Network").

ConnectionType: A REG_DWORD value that indicates the type of the network resource being connected to. For example, a value of 1 indicates a disk drive, and a value of 2 indicates a printer.

DeferFlags: A REG_DWORD value that may control some connection and disconnection settings for the mapped network drive.

UseOptions: A REG_BINARY value containing various settings and options associated with the mapped network drive. The binary data is not designed to be human-readable and is managed by Windows and other tools.

Persistent network drive

To map a network drive that will persist after a system reboot, add the /persistent parameter:

1net use X: \\<your>\<UNC>\<path> /persistent:yes

To disable persistence when mapping a network drive, use /persistent:no.

Other use cases

Display the current network connections:

1net use

Connect to a shared printer:

1net use LPT1: \\<your>\<UNC>\<path> /persistent:yes

Replace "LPT1" with the appropriate printer port.

Disconnect from a shared resource by specifying the UNC path:

1net use \\<your>\<UNC>\<path> /delete

Connect to a shared resource using a different username and password, without mapping a drive letter:

1net use \\<your>\<UNC>\<path> /user:<domain>\<username> <password>