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Mapping the Q: Drive and R: Drive

Mapping the Q: Drive and R: Drive

This article will tell you how to map a network drive. Most people at UConn do not have a network drive. If your department or school has granted you access to a network drive, follow the instructions in this article to add it. If you previously had a P: or Q: drive that was retired, the data may currently live in OneDrive (P:) or SharePoint (Q:).

Prerequisites:

On-campus: Connect to the network via Ethernet or UCONN-SECURE. You will not be able to connect via UCONN-GUEST. 

Off-campus: Connect to the UConn network using the UConn VPN.

Windows

  1. Open File Explorer.

  2. On the left-hand side of the window, right-click on This PC and select Map network drive….

    map network drive option in this PC context menu

  3. At the Map Network Drive window, select the drive letter you would like to use and input the folder path:

    • Q: drive: \\grove.ad.uconn.edu\EFS

    • R: drive: \\grove.ad.uconn.edu\Research

  4. If you are on a UConn-owned computer, click Finish to connect and add the network drive. Once the folder appears, you are all set. If you are on a personal device, continue to the next step.

  5. Select Connect using different credentials, then click Finish.

  6. In the Windows Security popup, enter the following credentials:

    1. Email address: <NetID>@ad.uconn.edu

    2. Password: NetID password

      credentials for windows security popup

  7. Click OK to map and connect the network drive.

Windows cannot find the network drive?

Try the following paths instead:

  • Q: drive: \\files.its.uconn.edu\EFS

  • R: drive: \\files.its.uconn.edu\Research

macOS

  1. Open Finder.

  2. Open Finder Settings… from the top menu bar and make sire that Connected servers are selected.

    connected server option in finder settings

  3. Press Command (⌘)+K to open the Connect to Server popup.

  4. Enter the path for your network drive in the Server Address field:

    1. Q: drive: smb://dfs.its.uconn.edu/efs_mac

    2. R: drive: smb://dfs.its.uconn.edu/research_mac

  5. Click Connect to start the connection. In the popup that appears, click Connect again to continue.

  6. In the credential popup, connect using the following credentials:

    1. Name: <NetID>@ad.uconn.edu

    2. Password: NetID password

      credentials screen

  7. Click Connect to finish the connection. The network drive will appear in Finder. The connection is complete, but will disappear if you restart your computer. Continue to the next step if you want to maintain the connection to your network drive.

  8. Close the network drive in Finder and navigate to your desktop. You will find your efs or research drive. Right-click it and select Make Alias.

    make alias option in context menu

  9. A new shortcut titled efs alias or research alias will be added to your desktop. You can rename this if you want.

  10. When you next want to connect to your network drive, open this shortcut to re-establish the connection.

Unable to connect or see your folder?

Try the following paths instead for your network drive in the Server Address field:

  • Q: drive: smb://files.its.uconn.edu/efs_mac

  • R: drive: smb://files.its.uconn.edu/research_mac

Linux

The process may vary depending on the Linux distribution you are running. These instructions are for Ubuntu Desktop 25.04.

Graphical

  1. Open Files and open the Network tab on the sidebar.

  2. Enter the path for your network drive in the Server address field:

    1. Q: drive: smb://grove.ad.uconn.edu/efs

    2. R: drive: smb://grove.ad.uconn.edu/research

  3. Choose your option for remembering your credentials. Then click Connect.

  4. In the authentication popup, enter the following information:

    1. Username: NetID

    2. Domain: grove.ad.uconn.edu

    3. Password: NetID password

      user and password screen

  5. Click Connect to finish connecting. The network drive will appear in your Files.

CLI

Accessing a network drive requires the smbclient package to be installed.

  1. Open your terminal window.

  2. Enter the following command for your given network drive:

    1. Q: drive: smbclient -W grove.ad.uconn.edu -U <NetID> //grove.ad.uconn.edu/efs/

    2. R: drive: smbclient -W grove.ad.uconn.edu -U <NetID> //grove.ad.uconn.edu/research/

  3. Enter your NetID password when prompted.

  4. The network drive will now be mounted within the smbclient environment.

Sample CLI output

ajn@4D86ZY2:~$ smbclient -W grove.ad.uconn.edu -U ajn15104 //grove.ad.uconn.edu/efs/ Password for [GROVE.AD.UCONN.EDU\ajn15104]: Try "help" to get a list of possible commands. smb: \>

Unable to connect or see your folder?

Try the following paths instead for your network drive in the Server Address field:

  • Q: drive: smb://files.its.uconn.edu/efs

  • R: drive: smb://files.its.uconn.edu/research

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