Article ID: 2018872 - Last Review: December 6, 2011 - Revision: 5.0

Clients cannot connect to SharePoint via UNC Path due to error "You were not connected because a duplicate name exists on the network"

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Symptoms

When attempting to access a SharePoint site or document library via UNC Path like \\SharePoint\Docs one of the following errors may occur:

"You were not connected because a duplicate name exists on the network. Go to System in Control Panel to change the computer name and try again"

"The workstation driver is not installed"

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Cause

The "WebClient" service or "mrxdav" service is stopped or was restarted in an improper manner.

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Resolution

On the client machine(s) that is unable to connect, restart the WebClient service properly using the following commands:

net stop webclient
net stop mrxdav
net start webclient

Note: mrxdav will be restarted properly when webclient is started.

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If you use Network Monitor to capture the network traffic between your client machine and the SharePoint server, you may see this error:

2493 5.218750 {TCP:99, IPv4:98} <SourceIP> <DestIP> SMB SMB:R; Tree Connect Andx - NT Status: System - Error, Code = (189) STATUS_DUPLICATE_NAME

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Note This is a "FAST PUBLISH" article created directly from within the Microsoft support organization. The information contained herein is provided as-is in response to emerging issues. As a result of the speed in making it available, the materials may include typographical errors and may be revised at any time without notice. See Terms of Use (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=151500) for other considerations.

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