Chapter 3 - Connecting to Network Drives from a Windows 3.1 Client
Windows commands and dialog boxes use the term network drive to describe what the User's Guide for DOS and OS/2 calls a file volume. Both terms mean large areas on a disk in a VINES server that store files and applications. In this guide, network drive refers to file volumes on a VINES server.
In a VINES network, files are stored in network drives, which are large partitions in a disk in a VINES server. A network drive is similar to the local fixed disk in your workstation in that it contains the files and applications you use in your work.
Network drives, however, typically have a much greater storage capacity and are shared among a group of users. Depending on how the system administrator configures the VINES software on your workstation, you can access up to 25 different network drives.
Example Accessing Network Drives
In Figure 3-1, both Duncan Fraser in the Sales Department and Courtney Bryan in the Marketing Department can access Sales Files@Sales@WCTUS and Mkt Files@Sales@WCTUS, which are located on the server disk on the server Sales Server@Sales@WCTUS. However, Duncan cannot access the files located on Courtney's local disk, nor can she access his.
Your system administrator sets up the network drives needed by your group and assigns a StreetTalk name to each one for easy identification. The administrator also sets access rights to the network drives, securing information within the drives so that only designated users have access to it.
In Windows, you connect to network drives through the Windows File Manager. This chapter shows you how to connect to VINES file volumes through the Network Connections command.
Note: If you run Windows 3.0, use the Connect Net Drive command. This command is replaced by the Network Connections command for Windows 3.1.
File Manager is a Windows application that lets you perform the following tasks:
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Organize your files and directories. ![]()
Start applications. ![]()
Connect to network drives.
For complete information on File Manager, refer to the Microsoft Windows User's Guide. The rest of this chapter focuses on using File Manager to connect to network drives.
To start File Manager, double-click the File Manager program icon. The File Manager window appears, displaying the Directory Tree window for your current drive, as shown in Figure 3-2.
When you open File Manager, all the network drives specified in your user profile appear as drive icons under the Directory Tree title bar, as shown in Figure 3-2.
Your system administrator set up these network drives in your user profile. The files and applications you use in your work reside on these network drives. When you start Windows, Windows uses these settings to display your network drives as icons in File Manager.
If authorized by your system administrator, you can connect to other available network drives not specified in your user profile through the Network Connections command.
Disconnecting from a Network Drive
The Network Connections command lets you connect to available VINES network drives that are not specified in your user profile. You use this command to connect to network drives.
Any network drives you connect to during a specific login session are valid only for that session. Once you exit Windows and log out, these connections are not saved.
Note: If you connect to network drives and enable the Persistent option, these connections are recreated each time you start Windows. Persistent connections are described later in this chapter.
Connecting to a network drive involves these steps:
1. Choose the Network Connections command from the File Manager's Disk menu.
2. Add a connection to a network drive.
3. Enter the StreetTalk name of the network drive in the File Service text box.
4. Choose a drive letter from the Drive list box or type a letter in the Drive box.
5. Specify a root directory for the selected network drive.
6. Confirm your network drive connection.
The rest of this section describes these steps in more detail.
Choosing the Network Connections Command
From the File Manager, choose the Network Connections command from the Disk menu. The Network Connections dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 3-3.
All the network drives specified in your user profile appear in the Connections text box. The Network Connections dialog box lets you:
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Add network connections to network drives not specified in your user profile. ![]()
Remove network connections.
The shield icon next to two of the network drives shown in Figure 3-3 marks a protected connection. Protected connections are set by your system administrator and cannot be deleted.
This section describes the quickest way to connect to a network drive. Later sections describe the different options available to connect to network drives.
To add a connection, follow these steps:
1. Click Add to connect to a network drive. The Add Drive Connection dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 3-4.
2. Type the StreetTalk name of the file service (network drive), or press TAB to browse for file service names. If you press TAB to browse for file service names, the first file service name in the list box is selected. Type the first few letters of the file service you want to connect to. The list moves to the first match.
3. Specify a root directory. You can specify any directory in the network drive as the root directory for your connection. This directory then becomes the root, or top level directory, for the network drive.
4. Enter the drive letter in the Drive box, or click on the drop-down list box to display all available drive letters. Select a drive letter by double-clicking on it. This drive letter becomes the letter associated with your network drive.
5. The Persistent option box is enabled by default. Click to disable the option. If the option is enabled, the network drive connects the next time you start Windows.
6. Click OK to confirm your network connection. The File Manager window appears with the new network drive icon.
Note: If you do not have the proper access rights to the network drive you selected, an error message appears. Ask your system administrator for assistance.
The next few sections describe some of the ways you can customize connecting to network drives in more detail, such as:
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Using the STDA search list to search for file service names ![]()
Specifying a root directory through the Browse Root dialog box ![]()
Creating a subset list of file services to use to connect to a network drive ![]()
Marking network connections "persistent"
Searching for File Service Names
When you choose the Add command and the Add Drive Connection dialog box appears, the File Service text box displays *@*@* by default. You can either type in the file service name or search the list of file service names.
To search for file service names, follow these steps:
1. Press TAB. The first file service name from the list appears in the File Service text box.
2. To move through the list, either:
- Use the scroll bar, arrow keys, or paging keys.
- Type the first letters of the file service name. The letters appear above the File Service text box and the first available match appears at the top of the list.
Typing the first letters of the file service name is the quickest way to locate file services to connect to as network drives.
3. To choose the file service name, either:
- Double-click the name.
- Select the name and click OK.
Creating a Subset List of File Services
You can create smaller lists of file services that match a StreetTalk pattern, such as *@sales@WCTUS. In this example, all file service names whose StreetTalk group and organization names match "sales" and "WCTUS" appear in the list area of the Add Drive Connection dialog box.
To create a subset pattern, follow these steps:
1. Click Subset from the Add Drive Connection dialog box. The StreetTalk Directory Assistance Subset dialog box appears.
You can enter StreetTalk patterns in either the:
- Name Pattern text box, such as *@sales@WCTUS. The default search pattern is *@*@*.
- Description Pattern text box. The default pattern is *.
2. Enter your pattern and click OK. The file service names that match your pattern appear in the list area of the Add Drive Connection dialog box.
If you want to save your StreetTalk pattern for later use, click Add in the StreetTalk Directory Assistance Subset dialog box. Your pattern is added to a File Service drop-down list in the Add Drive Connection dialog box.
If you want your pattern to appear as the default, click Make First in the StreetTalk Directory Assistance Subset dialog box. Your pattern appears as the default search pattern when you next choose to connect to network drives.
Note: You can follow these steps to create a subset list of print services to use to connect to network printers. Connecting to network printers is described in Chapter 4.
Specifying a Root Directory
By default, the Add Drive Connection dialog box displays the root directory (\) for the network drive you selected in the Root text box. You can either:
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Enter a root directory path in the Root text box. ![]()
Click Browse Root to display the Browse Root dialog box.
To use the Browse Root dialog box to specify a root directory, follow these steps:
1. Double-click the root directory (\) icon to display the root directory's subdirectories.
2. Click on a directory to select it. To display a directory's subdirectories, double-click the directory.
As you move down through the directory tree, the current path continually appears below the title bar of the dialog box. You can move down as many levels as you wish. To move up a level through the directory tree, click the parent directory.
3. After you select your root directory, click the OK button. The Add Drive Connection dialog box reappears with the specified root directory in the Root text box.
Example Specifying a Root Directory
A user named Duncan Fraser stores files in a directory, "\DUNCANF." He can specify \DUNCANF as the connection root for the network drive. This directory then becomes the root, or top level, directory for Duncan. Note that other users on the network can specify other directories as root directories for their own connections to the same network drive.
Making Network Connections Persistent
The Persistent option box in the Add Drive Connection dialog box is enabled by default. If enabled, the connection to the network drive is re-created each time you start Windows or log in to the network while running Windows.
To remove the persistent connection, click the option box to disable the option. The next time you start Windows, you will need to connect to the network drive again if you want to use it, since connections you make to network drives are valid only for the current login session.
If you always access a file volume not specified in your user profile, ask your system administrator to add the file volume to your user profile.
Because persistent connections are workstation-specific, users who use your workstation and do not have access rights to the connections you marked as persistent see "access denied" error messages when they log in to the network and start Windows.
Disconnecting from a Network Drive
To disconnect from a network drive, follow these steps:
1. From the File Manager, choose the Network Connections command from the Disk menu. The Network Connections dialog box appears, listing your current network connections.
2. Select the file service name of the network connection you want to remove, and click Remove.
Any network drives you disconnect from with this command are valid only for the current login session.
Note: You cannot disconnect from the network drive you are currently connected to. The network drive you are currently connected to is the one highlighted in the File Manager window. If you try to disconnect from a connected network drive, an error message appears.
In addition to connecting to and disconnecting from network drives through the File Manager, you can use the SETDRIVE command through the MS-DOS Prompt icon.
Note: When you connect to or disconnect from network drives using SETDRIVE, File Manager is not notified of these events. It is recommended that you do not run the two programs simultaneously. As an alternative, exit and restart File Manager after using the SETDRIVE program. The SETDRIVE program is described in the VINES User's Guide for DOS and OS/2 and in the Command Reference.