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I just spent $400 on a new Netgear Nighthawk router
I just spent $400 on a new Netgear Nighthawk router only to find out it has the same problem as the old out of service RAX43 router. If it’s a Windows issue, I don’t think MS is too interested in fixing it. After all they would rather sell their cloud storage, One Drive. I would imagine that Netgear would have more of an interest in finding a fix as Readyshare only adds to the valve of the router. I am using One Drive more than I am using Readyshare, since my Readyshare access is undependable and random. But it isn’t just the Readyshare access that disconnects, it is also the access to the Router’s setting page. That may be why Netgear is now selling the idea of using an Android app instead of a PC.
52 Replies
Reporting that since posting my past post at 3:36PM that at 5:13PM my PC can still access the readyshare in explorer using the readyshare path url.
Reporting that waking up my PC thats connected to the RS600 router still has access to the readyshare in explorer using the readyshare path url.
I once read a post on a forum of a person saying that his problems with readyshare stopped when closed his Microsoft Account and changed his network profile to Local only. So, I am wondering if your test PC is also local only or are you signed to a Microsoft Account and accessing files on OneDrive?
The drive is SSD. Most of the time after 20 minutes but not always. Sometimes it stays connected for up to an hour. Sometimes if I leave the PC on long enough it will reconnect on its own.
Ok, setting up a 250Gb SSD drive I have here on my RS600 and will have one ethernet connected PC, 24H2, and see what I can find. PC is connected to the 10Gb ethernet port since it has a 10Gb ethernet adapter.
FW is v.22
Will check this in a while and monitor.
The USB drive is a Samsung T5 500GB. The Winver is Windows 11 Home 25H2 and yes, SMBv1 is enabled. It won't connect at all if I disable SMBv1.
This drive a mechanical or SSD drive?
So after about 20 minutes you loose connection and get this error correct?
Wondering if this also maybe at play:
I'll try and get my RS600 online and set up a share drive and see if I can help reproduce this.
So this issue was being seeing on 24H2 and still seen on 25H2? Had you seen this on prior 23H2 if you had this loaded?
I never did have this problem with 23H2. I also checked ‘fdrespub’ but that service is running.
Possible something MS may have introduced.
What brand and model of the USB drive is connected to the RS router?
What version of Windows this this?
Is SMBv1.0 enabled on the Windows PC?
As FURRYe38 says, could try enabling smb 1 versions.
How to enable SMB1/CIFS on Windows
- Open the Start Menu, type Turn Windows features on or off, and select the result.
- Scroll down and find SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support.
- Check the box next to SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support.
- Click OK and restart your computer when prompted.
As FURRYe38 says, could try enabling smb 1 versions
If it were SMB 1, you'd be getting a different windows error. Though that still might be needed if you never get access.
This particular error indicates that Windows thinks the drive letter (U:) is already in use.
Options for fixing it:
- mapping the share to a different drive letter (more of a workaround than a fix).
- rebooting the PC will generally work (unless the problem is caused by a persistent drive mapping you did in the past, or are doing in a startup script).
- unmap all network drive letters by running CMD on the PC and then entering net use * /d /y
After (2) or (3), you need to map the drive again.
You could also just enter \\readyshare\USB_Storage in the explorer address bar, and see if that works more reliably.
If it does, you can alternatively
- add the share as a "network location" in explorer and/or
- create an explorer shortcut on the Windows desktop that opens up the share in explorer
If you need advice on how to do either, then you can post back (or just google search).
But it isn’t just the Readyshare access that disconnects, it is also the access to the Router’s setting page.
Have you tried using the router's IP address to access the settings? (instead of http://www.routerlogin.net )?
I would imagine that Netgear would have more of an interest in finding a fix
This particular error is an internal windows problem (or an error on your part if U: actually is already in use) - not something Netgear can fix in the router.
FWIW, issues with mapped drives have always plagued Windows (long before OneDrive existed). I put a script on the desktops of any of my PCs that use them, which unmaps the all my network drives and remaps them. Even so, I sometimes need to reboot the PC to get them to mount properly. (Note mine are not ReadyShare).
But if you routinely can't access the router web ui using the router IP address, then there is something wrong.
Netgear Router Complain
I just spent $400 on a new Netgear Nighthawk router only to find out it has the same problem as the old out of service RAS43 router. If it’s a Windows issue, I don’t think MS is too interested in fixing it. After all they would rather sell their cloud storage, One Drive. I would imagine that Netgear would have more of an interest in finding a fix as Readyshare only adds to the valve of the router. I am using One Drive more than I am using Readyshare, since my Readyshare access is undependable and random. But it isn’t just the Readyshare access that disconnects, it is also the access to the Router’s setting page. That may be why Netgear is now selling the idea of using an Android app instead of a PC.
Hellorobmartinez108,
Spending $400 on a new router only to face the same ReadySHARE and admin page access issues is frustrating. If both routers show similar behavior, it could point to a firmware or compatibility issue—possibly with Windows SMB settings. I recommend checking for the latest firmware updates and ensuring SMB 1.0 is enabled in Windows if required. Netgear support should address this, especially since it impacts core router functionality.
Best Regards,
Donna TaylorThanks for your reply. I’ve had SMB v1 enabled since before I purchased the new router. So, just for troubleshooting, I disabled SMB v1. Immediately, my connection to readyshare and the admin page was terminated. I got a slightly different error message attached below. This tells me that new Netgear Nighthawk RS600 routers are still using SMB v1. With SMB v1 enabled, I can get temporary access to readyshare. After about 20 minutes, the router drops my connection and that is when I get the error message that my local device is already in use. I did upgrade the new router to the latest firmware before I disabled SMB v1. My only hope now is that before the RS600 goes out of upgrade service, Netgear will fix the firmware so that SMB v1 will no longer be necessary for Windows 11 devices. That is, if it turns out that SMB v1 is causing the connection problems.
Please stick with one discussion thread.
While is it clear that you need to keep SMB 1 enabled, that is NOT the cause of your "device already in use". That is happening because the PC didn't fully close the session when the connection got dropped. So as far as it is concerned, U: is still in use by the old (failed) session.
I gave some advice on your other thread here:
That includes ways to easily access the share without mapping it to a drive letter.
Part of the puzzle here is why the connection is dropping. Some PCs (particularly laptops) will power down their network hardware during periods of inactivity. Is the connection dropping when you are actively using the PC? Or is it happening when you step away for a while?
What model router is this?
What version of Windows this this?
Is SMBv1.0 enabled on the Windows PC?
