Mapped Network Drive Launches ‘Open With’ Dialog

Introduction:

Windows XP can be very sensitive to even the slightest changes when it wants to be despite being quite stable at this stage of it’s life.

In this case the introduction of a single specific little file into the root directory of your Mapped Network Drive has caused all sorts of problems.

Symptoms:

• You double click on a mapped network drive in My Computer and the Windows XP Open With dialog box appears
• You double click the shortcut to a mapped network drive and the Open With dialog box appears
• If you right-click the mapped network drive and click Explore, the drive opens correctly

Explanation:

This problem is being caused by a file called Autorun.inf being located in the root folder of the network drive.

Solutions:

Solution 1:  Remove Autorun.inf and Re-map Drive

1. Right click the network drive and choose Explore
2. In the root folder of the network drive, locate and either move the file autorun.inf to a sub-folder or delete the file altogether.
   • Tip:  If you can’t see autorun.inf then it may be hidden.  Click Tools > Folder Options > View > Show hidden files and folders > Click OK > follow step 2 above again.
3. Close Explorer
4. Right click on the network drive icon and click Disconnect
5. Right click on My Computer and click Map Network Drive
6. Choose the correct drive letter, enter the path and click OK