Mapped Drive = 3 minute startup pause??

[Happo]

2.8GHz, 512Mb, XP Pro, Wireless network. When I map a network drive, the next time Windows starts it freezes (seemingly totally idle) for about 3 minutes after the desktop background is loaded (no explorer). If I disconnect the network drive and reboot, it starts normally. If McAfee has anything to do with this it's going in the bin for good, what the hell is the problem with McAfee (and Norton for that matter), xp pro and networks....Thanks in advance
Daniel.

 

[Shad007]

I have seen a similar experience on a wi-fi network i've been setting up recently...have you got any GPO's running for these machines?

 

[Rick998]

Happo,

Just a thought but this may be down to XP's default habit of checking the network for printers and scheduled tasks before it does anything else?

We don't use wireless but we do use a reg fix at startup on all our XP boxes at work to stop this habit. I know bcastner has mentioned this habit elsewhere but can't search for it at the moment (anyone else having difficulties with the revised Tek-Tips 'look-and-feel'?)

The fix (which can be copied and pasted into Notepad then saved as a .reg file) is:-

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[-HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\RemoteComputer\NameSpace]
"{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}"

Hope this helps...

Rick

 

[twospoons]

try adding the ip address of the server you are wanting to map the drive from, to the list of dns servers. i have seen this make drastic improvements even on wired networks.

 

[Happo]

I probably should have said that this 'network' is tiny, three machines and one wireless access point.Shad007, I'm guessing I don't have any GPO's running because I don't know what they are, I am very new to networking in any capacity. Rick998 re checking for printers etc I thought the same thing, but wouldn't it do that regardless of whether a drive was mapped or not? File and printer sharing seems to be fine, I was just trying to make it easier to use for the office staff here by having a drive they could see on their screen, networks are a scary thing for some... What do I do with that fix after I save it as a .reg file? twospoons, ip's here are assigned by the router, they seem to change depending on what order the systems log in etc...

 

[bcastner]

My guess is not a drive mapping issues causing the delay, but a DHCP issue.

If there are any other network adapters identified in Device Manager other than the wireless, disable them and try again. (Disable, not uninstall).

 

[Rick998]

Happo,

Sorry... I should have said that after saving it as a .reg file, just double-click on it then answer Yes to add the information to the registry.

 

[bcastner]

Rick998,

Just a comment. Slow on startup is a very differnt issue than slow LAN browsing, the issue addressed by your .REG file above to remove a search for scheduled tasks.

. disable uneeded network adapters. This speeds up initialization and the search for an DHCP IP address;

. make sure your adapter drivers are current. Even a brand new machine offer has had a driver update.

Finally, post the results back here of an Iponfig /All from a command line session. The wonderful Steve Winograd notes:

There's a problem that I've seen many times in the XP networking newsgroup that I'd like to see addressed in a KB article. Here's the typical situation:

1. Workgroup network.
2. No firewall.
3. Can ping other computers, and can be pinged by them.
4. NetBIOS over TCP/IP enabled.
5. Can't see other computers on the network, and they can't see it.

Here's my usual reply, which fixes the problem in most cases:

> Run "ipconfig /all" and look at the "Node Type" at
> the beginning of the output. If it says "Peer-to-Peer" (which should
> actually be "Point-to-Point"), that's the problem. It means that the
> computer only uses a WINS server, which isn't available on a
> peer-to-peer network, for NetBIOS name resolution.
>
> If that's the case, run the registry editor, open this key:
>
> HLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Netbt\Parameters
>
> and delete these values if they're present:
>
> NodeType
> DhcpNodeType
>
> Reboot, then try network access again.

****** end quote of Steve Winograd

Best,
Bill Castner

 

[Happo]

Thanks for the help guys. I have since decided to get rid of the wireless system all together for the time being, it seems to be dropping out and it adds another variable I don't need. I'll let you know how it goes and if this problem reappears...
Daniel.

 

[Rick998]

bcastner,

Looks like I got my 'slows' mixed up.

Thanks for the info though. I'll do some checking at work when I'm back from holiday (off to France tomorrow until end of month, yay!)

Rick

 

[bcastner]

Happo,

Wireless does work. And it does so without the dropouts and other issues you have experienced.

Upgrade that client to Service Pack 2, and use the wireless provisioning service through Control Panel. Make absolutely certain your firmware is up-to-date on the client side, that 802.1x authentication is disabled.

I have acted as a consultant for very, very large and very small wireless sites, and to me any issue is resolvable as long as the equipment is sited properly.

 

[bcastner]

For lost mapped drives, start by disabling the default behavior of XP to use "Fast Logon Optomization."

See the last paragraph in my FAQ: faq779-4017

 

[Happo]

Thanks for the help, how can I get service pack 2? The windows update site doesn't offer it yet. Re wireless, with firmware and drivers updated I could not get it to work consistently but there are some other issues with these comps so I will use cable until I get them right, then give wireless another go (with sp2). I bought what I thought was a good wireless system, Netgear WGT624 router ,DM602 Modem and WG311T adapters but have had nothing but problems, initially with ip assignment (modem, router and windows racing to do the same thing). It turns out I am meant to not setup the network through Windows' inbuilt facility and instead exclusively use the Netgear software. I thought I had it right (it was 'working' to some extent) then two of the comps crashed totally with an unrelated Write-Back caching error, some conflict between ATI cards and Large System Cache I believe. and then with dropouts, Netgear's support is not good. I do remember that ipconfig /all (while wireless) Node Type was Unknown. Unfortunately I can not have an uninterrupted run at them since they must be used every day (by techno-intolerant people), while I am trying to stabilise them, perfect. I am sure you pros could figure it out but having all these issues simultaneously makes it hard for me so I am trying to reduce possible reasons for problems right now.
Thanks again.
Daniel.

 

[Shad007]

Happo, I had managed to fix a rather gnarly problem with very slow network access from a particularly troublesome pc...you could try doing these simple steps.

1. Perform constant ping tests (ie use ping -t xx.xx.xx.xx from a separate machine on the network to both a) the troubled pc and b) the target pc of the mapped drive. This should verify whether its a network connectivity issue.

2. If it does prove to be very laggy across the local network (should be giving <1 ms..anything bigger is lag) try leaving the constant ping running whilst changing the configuaration of your wireless network card. (go to the properties of the card and change each one 1 at a time).

I followed these steps when I was receiving 100-200ms lag on a local wireless network and it turned out to be a configuration relating to 'Power-saving mode'..after changing this to 'Continuous Access' I started receiving <1ms pings instantly. Not sure it's relevant for your setup, but saved me a lot of headscratching