Hack 48 Map Network Drives

This quick way to map a network drive can replace the traditional approach of using batch files.

Using VBScript, you can easily map drive letters to shared folders on your network. This approach allows you to use VBScript to map and unmap network drives?for example, in logon scripts. It also allows you greater flexibility in customizing scripts to perform actions across a network and doesn't require the net use command to work.

Basically, the script creates the Network scripting object and then uses the MapNetworkDrive method to assign a drive letter to a network share. I've included examples of code for both mapping and unmapping network drives.

The Code

First, here's the code for mapping a network drive:

Dim net

Set net = CreateObject("WScript.Network")

net.MapNetworkDrive "Z:", "\\server\share"

And here's code for unmapping a network drive:

Dim WshNetwork

Set WshNetwork = WScript.CreateObject("WScript.Network")

WshNetwork.RemoveNetworkDrive "Z:"

Running the Hack

To use the first snippet of code, type it into Notepad (with Word Wrap disabled) and save it with a .vbs extension?for example, as map.vbs. Then modify this line to specify the drive letter and share you want to map:

net.MapNetworkDrive "Z:", "\\server\share"

For example, to map the drive letter K: to the Sysback share on a file server with an IP address of 172.16.11.230, change the line to:

 net.MapNetworkDrive "K:", "\\172.16.11.230\Sysback"

Then, run the script either by creating a shortcut to it and double-clicking on the shortcut, by opening a command prompt and typing cscript.exe map.vbs, or by calling it from a batch file using a line like this (where path is the absolute path to where the script is located):