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Map a Network drive
Most Windows programs allow to browse the "Network
Neighborhood" in the
File-Open-dialog:

However, some older program converted from 16-bit code (as used
on Windows 3.1) have not
been updated to use the new Win32 File-Open and continue to use
their old customer-design
File-Open dialogs without possibility to browse the
Network-Neighborhood.
And DOS-program are not capable to support the
Network-Neighborhood, because they are
written in 16-bit code, which can only handle short filenames
with the 8+3 limitation and can
not use internally the UNC-names (as required when
accessing files via Network Neighborhood)
To allow such old programs to work with Network-files, Windows
networking offers a feature
called "Mapping":
the network resource is made available as a simulated disk-drive,
also called a virtual disk-drive or
a network drive.
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Via the "Network
Neighborhood" on
the desktop, select a shared disk-resource
on the network, then right-click on the
resource and select from the context
menu to "Map Network Drive"
Note: On a Microsoft network, you can
only define a Mapping for a shared
resource, not for any directory
inside
the shared resource
(that is possible on Novell
Networks) |
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Select the drive
character to be used
(windows will show the first available drive
character) and define, whether this drive
should be reconnected automatically on
rebooting your system |
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The system will then
display the content
of the network drive.
Note the symbol used to represent this
drive:

a disk with a connected Network cable |
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Look in "My
Computer" on your desktop,
where the network drive is now listed like
all other local (=on your local
computer)
drives. |
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In the File-Open dialog,
the network drive
is displayed as part of "My Computer",
old programs can now access it using the
drive character. |
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