{"id":576,"date":"2025-07-29T15:38:50","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T20:38:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/triplescomputers.com\/blog\/?p=576"},"modified":"2025-09-01T20:38:51","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T01:38:51","slug":"solution-0x80070035-the-network-path-was-not-found-on-windows-11-24h2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/triplescomputers.com\/blog\/casestudies\/solution-0x80070035-the-network-path-was-not-found-on-windows-11-24h2\/","title":{"rendered":"SOLUTION: 0x80070035 \u2013 “The network path was not found” on Windows 11 24H2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve recently upgraded to Windows 11\u202f24H2<\/strong> and suddenly can\u2019t access your NAS or another PC\u2019s shared folders, you\u2019re not alone. Microsoft quietly hardened SMB (Server Message Block)<\/strong> security defaults in this release, and one side effect is the dreaded:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Error Code:\u202f0x80070035<\/strong> \u2013 The network path was not found<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What Changed?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Starting in 24H2, Windows now requires SMB signing<\/strong> (digitally signing every SMB packet) by default on both<\/em> the client and server roles. While this makes sense in enterprise environments, many home users and small businesses still have older NAS devices, media servers, or peer\u2011to\u2011peer Windows PCs that either:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Don\u2019t understand SMB signing at all, or<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Support it but can\u2019t negotiate it quickly enough.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    The result is that Windows drops the connection before the remote share ever responds, and you get a network path error instead of an authentication prompt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n\n\n\n

    The Fix: Make SMB Signing Optional<\/em> Again<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    You don\u2019t have to turn SMB signing completely off (though you can). Simply tell Windows: \u201cDon\u2019t require it\u2014use it if both sides support it.\u201d<\/em> There are three easy ways to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n\n\n\n

    1. PowerShell (One\u2011Liners)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    Run PowerShell as Administrator<\/strong> and paste:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    # Relax signing requirement for inbound (server) and outbound (client) SMB
    Set-SmbServerConfiguration  -RequireSecuritySignature $false -Confirm:$false
    Set-SmbClientConfiguration  -RequireSecuritySignature $false -Confirm:$false
    <\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    If you\u2019re stuck with a legacy NAS that breaks even with optional signing, also run:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Set-SmbServerConfiguration  -EnableSecuritySignature $false -Confirm:$false
    Set-SmbClientConfiguration  -EnableSecuritySignature $false -Confirm:$false
    <\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    That disables automatic signing entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n
    2. Batch File<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
    Save this as Fix-SMBSigning.bat<\/code>, right\u2011click Run as Administrator<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    @echo off
    setlocal EnableDelayedExpansion
    set \"alert=\"

    for %%K in (\"HKLM\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Services\\LanmanServer\\Parameters\"
                \"HKLM\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Services\\LanmanWorkstation\\Parameters\") do (
        for \/f \"tokens=3\" %%V in ('reg query %%K \/v RequireSecuritySignature 2^>nul ^| find \"REG_DWORD\"') do if \/i \"%%V\"==\"0x1\" (
            if not defined alert echo Disabling SMB Signing Requirement & set alert=1
            reg add %%K \/v RequireSecuritySignature \/t REG_DWORD \/d 0 \/f >nul
        )
    )
    endlocal

    :: Uncomment these lines if you want to force a restart of SMB services immediately
    :: net stop lanmanserver \/y & net start lanmanserver
    :: net stop lanmanworkstation \/y & net start lanmanworkstation
    <\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n
    3. Direct Registry Import<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
    If you prefer a .reg file, paste the following into Notepad and save as DisableSMBSigning.reg<\/code>, then double\u2011click<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

    [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Services\\LanmanServer\\Parameters]
    \"RequireSecuritySignature\"=dword:00000000

    [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Services\\LanmanWorkstation\\Parameters]
    \"RequireSecuritySignature\"=dword:00000000
    <\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    Reboot<\/strong> or restart the LanmanServer<\/code> and LanmanWorkstation<\/code> services for the change to take effect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n
    Why Not Leave SMB Signing On?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    If you\u2019re in a corporate environment with Active Directory, you should leave SMB signing required. But for home and small\u2011office setups\u2014especially with devices that can\u2019t handle it\u2014the risk of disabling the requirement is minimal as long as you\u2019re on a trusted LAN (which I’m sure your home network is… hopefully).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    SMB signing defends against man\u2011in\u2011the\u2011middle attacks by cryptographically verifying every packet. If all your devices are inside a secured network, that\u2019s probably not a major concern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n
    Bottom Line<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    The 24H2 update didn\u2019t break <\/em>the connection to your NAS; it simply enforced a security feature your hardware<\/a> can\u2019t handle. Loosening that requirement restores normal behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    If you\u2019re still seeing 0x80070035<\/strong> after applying one of the fixes above, double\u2011check:<\/p>\n\n\n\n