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Connect to G drive

Connect to G drive

Owned by Andrew Molloy
Last updated: Mar 17, 2025

 This covers connecting to the G drive from your personal laptop. You can also use a lab computer to access G without having to do any of these steps.

If you instead need access to the Arch RemoteLab, click here.

On or off campus

This method works over AirOrangeX and while off campus.

  1. Install the SU Azure VPN following these directions.

    • After you’ve installed the VPN, return here and continue with the steps below.

  2. Sign into the VPN (it must be connected while you access the G drive).

  3. Connect to the G drive using the following steps:

Windows

  1. Open Windows Explorer (file manager) and click This PC on the left.

  2. Click 'Map network drive' on the ribbon. If you don't see it, click the small expansion arrow on the far right to show the ribbon. 

    Windows 10:


    Windows 11:


    Windows 11 alternate method:

    Right click on 'This PC' and choose 'Map network drive'. If you don't see it, click 'Show more options' then look for Map network drive.

     

  3. In the Map Network Drive box, configure as follows:

    1. Drive: G

    2. Folder: \\shared.ad.syr.edu\drive

    3. Enable 'Reconnect at sign-in'

    4. Enable 'Connect using different credentials'

    5. Click Finish

       

  4. In the Windows Security box:

    1. Type your NetID, preceded by "ad\" (without the quotes). For example: ad\mynetid

    2. Fill in your NetID password

    3. Enable 'Remember my credentials'

    4. Click Ok

       

  5. You now have access to the G drive. The G drive will be available in the future as long as you are connected to the SU VPN.

  6. Don't forget to disconnect from the VPN when done using G.

Note: when you restart your computer, you may see an alert about 'disconnected drives'. Ignore the message. When you connect the VPN, you should have access to the G drive.

Connection Errors

  • If you receive one of these messages

    • "Cannot map directory path" because "The specified network password is not correct"

    • "The local device name is already in use"

    • "G:\ is not accessible. The user name or password is incorrect"

  • Then try these steps:

    • Close any open file manager windows.

    • Using Windows search, type 'Credential Manager' and start the app. Click 'Windows Credentials'.

    • Scroll down the list and look for an entry with your SU email address or NetID. Select it and click Edit. Enter your NetId password again.

macOS

  1. With the Finder showing, click Go > Connect to Server, or type cmd-K

  2. For address, enter smb://shared.ad.syr.edu/drive then click Connect. (Before clicking Connect, click the ‘+’ sign to add it to your favorites for quick future access.)

     

  3. In the authentication box that shows up, enter your NetID and NetID password, then click Connect. If you want to save your password, enable ‘Remember this password in my keychain.’

     

  4. You should now be connected to the G drive.

  5. If you find that ARCH is empty, disconnect the G drive and go back to step 2. Use this instead: smb://arch-fsrv.ad.syr.edu/arch-shared.

 

Each time you want to connect to G, start the VPN app and sign in. When you are done using G, disconnect the VPN.

Alternative if you can’t get the SU VPN to work

With this method, you don’t connect directly to the G drive; rather you log into an SU remote Windows machine where you can see the G drive.

You have two choices for how to connect to the SU remote Windows machine. Each link will take you to a new page with instructions.

Which method is best? The web browser is more convenient and preferable if all you need is G drive access.

Method 1: Connect through a web browser (click here for steps).

Note: you could use OneDrive or Google Drive instead.

  1. Click the up arrow icon in top right of the browser tab.

     

  2. This will open up a window where you can select files or folders on your computer.

  3. Wait while the files upload.

     

  4. After the files are uploaded, on the remote computer, open the Windows File Explorer (yellow icon).

     

  5. To find the uploaded files, click This PC on the left, then double click 'Remote Desktop Virtual Drive on RDWebClient' on the right.

     

  6. You should see Downloads and Uploads folders. Look inside Uploads and your files should be there. You can now copy them to the G drive or somewhere else.

Note: you could also use OneDrive or Google Drive instead.

  1. On the remote computer, open Windows File Explorer

     

  2. Click This PC on the left, then double click 'Remote Desktop Virtual Drive on RDWebClient' on the right.

     

  3. You should see Downloads and Uploads folders. Put files in the Downloads folder (such as from the G drive) that you want to copy to your laptop.

     

  4. As soon as you put files in Downloads, a down arrow icon will appear in the browser tab. Click it to start downloading your files.

Method 2: Connect using a Remote Desktop app (click here for steps).