Windows 11 Synology map network drive

There are many posts and official instructions about mapping your Synology NAS to Windows Explorer but they didn't cover the issue that I ran into.

For me, I already had the drive mapped fine on Windows 10 but couldn't get it to connect on Windows 11 (Clean install).

I assumed that the settings on the NAS were correct since it was previously mapped, but the issue turned out to be the SMB protocol I was previously using as Windows 11 requires a newer, more secure version.

When trying to connect through explorers 'map network drive' option, I kept getting the warning 'Windows cannot access \\NAS. Check the spelling of the name. Otherwise, there might be a problem with your network. To try to identify and resolve network problems, click Diagnose.

When trying to connect through the run dialogue, I got a clearer error message.

Press the Windows key and type 'run' to start the app, then enter the IP address of your NAS on the local network.

If you see a message like this, then the problem is a setting in the Synology Control Panel.

"You can't connect to the file share because it's not secure. This share requires the obsolete SMB1 protocol, which is unsafe and could expose your system to attack. Your system requires SMB2 or higher. For more info on resolving this issue, see https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=852747"

If you see the same message then it's an easy fix.

Open control panel on your Nas and go to 'File Services'. Under the SMB options, click on 'Advanced Settings'.

Here you can change the minimum version to SMB2 and the maximum to SMB3.

Once you've saved the new options the file server will restart.

Now when you try and map the drive Windows 11 should be able to connect.

In this tutorial, we’re going to take a look at how to map a Windows network drive on a Synology NAS.

There are many ways that you can access files on a Synology NAS, but most people will either use a network drive or an application like Synology Drive. I’ll be honest in saying that my preference is to use Synology Drive, but mapping a network drive has its benefits.

The main benefit is that it allows you to simply access files on your NAS without storing anything on your PC. Synology Drive will actually download the file onto your PC, and when changes are made, automatically sync those changes back to your NAS.

There are certainly benefits to that, but there may be situations where you’d like to move a large file from your PC to your NAS to save storage space. In this example, using a mapped network drive will move the entire file from your PC to your NAS, rather than syncing it.

We will take a look at how to map a network drive on a Synology NAS below using Windows 10, but if you’re using Windows 11, you can find instructions here.

Synology Setup

1. In Windows, SMB is utilized to map network drives and connect to a shared folder on your Synology NAS. Ensure that SMB is enabled by navigating to the Control Panel, selecting File Services, then SMB. Ensure that Enable SMB service is selected.

2. You’ll also have to ensure that a firewall rule has been created if you’re using Synology’s Firewall (which you should). Select Security, Firewall, then Edit Rules.

3. Create an Allow rule for Windows File Server.

Windows Setup

1. In Windows 10, open This PC and select Map Network Drive.

2. Select a Drive Letter and type in the folder that you’d like to connect to. You can either use the server name of your NAS or the IP address. However, if you’re using the IP address, ensure that you have a static IP address set up and configured. Select Connect using different credentials and then select Finish.

NOTE: The user that you plan on connecting with must have permission to the shared folder in DSM.

3. Enter the Username and Password of the user that you’d like to connect.

NOTE: Please keep in mind that this account will always be used if you select the Remember my credentials button.

4. Under Network Locations in Windows, you’ll see the mapped drive. Moving forward, you’ll always have this option where you’ll be able to double-click and access this folder on your NAS. You can map multiple folders to different drive letters if you’d like.

Can’t Map Windows Network Drive on a Synology NAS?

If you run into an issue where you can’t map the network drive inside of Windows, there are a few things that you should check:

1. Confirm that the user you’re connecting with has permission to the shared folder.
2. Confirm that you’re connecting to an individual folder. If you’re trying to connect to the NAS without specifying a folder (using the IP address or server name only), you will potentially run into issues. Always connect to an individual folder and mount multiple if necessary.

Conclusion

This tutorial looked at how to map a Windows network drive on a Synology NAS. The actual process for mapping the network drive is incredibly straightforward, but sometimes you’ll run into issues if you don’t have SMB configured or the firewall rules set up properly.

Thanks for checking out the tutorial on how to map a Windows network drive on a Synology NAS. If you have any questions on how to map a Windows network drive on a Synology NAS, please leave them in the comments!