I recently moved a standalone file share server to a newer file share using a virtual 2016 OS on a Net App system, which the rest of the company utilizes. The only change I made was updating the group policy for drive mapping. At first, everything seemed good, but users who access the share remotely started experiencing significant delays—taking about 20 to 45 seconds to open folders and access files. I even noticed that using the UNC path is also lagging. I tried several solutions, like deleting old quick access links, changing the drive letter, and adding the 'DirectoryCacheLifetime' registry key with a value of 0. I'm considering diving into the event logs next, but I'm running out of things to check and feeling frustrated about this situation. Has anyone else experienced something similar?
3 Answers
Seems like DNS could be a factor, too. Have you run any tests to rule out DNS issues? Sometimes that can really cause slowdowns.
Have you checked the connectivity between your endpoints and the domain controllers? Any action on a share typically requires a permissions check against the DC, and if there's high latency, it could slow down everything. Also, verify your DNS settings—using an IP address could default to NTLM authentication, while the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) will try Kerberos first, which might make a difference. Make sure your Net App is also set to negotiate the fastest Ethernet possible.
Just to clarify, are you saying the UNC path works fine but the mapped drive does not? If you're using a standard mapped drive instead of DFS, it might be worth checking for any folder properties that could cause delays. For instance, some folders might be flagged with metadata that requires File Explorer to scan for items like desktop.ini or thumbs.db, which could slow things down. You can test this by using Command Prompt or PowerShell to run "dir" on the mapped drive and see if the response is immediate. And remember to have backups before altering any properties!
Related Questions
Can't Load PhpMyadmin On After Server Update
Redirect www to non-www in Apache Conf
How To Check If Your SSL Cert Is SHA 1
Windows TrackPad Gestures