I have a desktop Windows application that is installed in small office environments.
The application uses an .MDB
database file as its database which is stored on a network drive.
Configuration files specify the path of the .MDB
file on the server using a letter drive: eg. f:\data\db.mdb
The application needs to access this database file when it starts. How can I ensure the network drive is connected and accessible when the application starts?
Sometimes Windows doesn't reconnect network drives and the only way to connect them is to double-click on them in My Computer, even when "Reconnect at logon" is ticked when mapping the drive.
Would a solution be to use \\machine_name\share
instead of drive letters?
You should use UNC paths, because not everyone will have your drive mapped to the same letter.
First, I would determine the UNC path of your file as it exists on your local computer at F:\data\db.mdb
using one of the techniques found here:
Basically, you look at the way Windows Explorer lists the network mapped drive, then use this to deduce the UNC path.
Assuming the drive is actually mapped on every local computer that plans to use the application, use the Win32_MappedLogicalDisk class to determine availability of the mapped network drive.
I have some sample code here that can be adapted to determine whether a given network drive is available (scroll down to the Mapped Drives Information section). You check .ProviderName
to match the UNC path, so you know which is the correct drive, then check the value of .Availability
to determine if the mapped network drive can be accessed.