How to Connect to Network Shares with Custom Credentials in .NET?

Accessing Network Shares with Custom Credentials in .NET Applications

Insufficient user permissions often necessitate providing alternative credentials when connecting to network shares. In .NET 2.0 and later, this is accomplished using the WNetAddConnection2 function from mpr.dll.

A Custom Network Connection Class

For efficient management, a dedicated class simplifies network connection handling. Here's a sample implementation:

public class NetworkConnection : IDisposable
{
    private string _networkName;

    public NetworkConnection(string networkName, NetworkCredential credentials)
    {
        _networkName = networkName;
        // ... Connection establishment logic using WNetAddConnection2 ...
    }

    public void Dispose()
    {
        // ... Clean up resources, disconnect from the network share ...
    }
}

Establishing the Connection

The core connection logic, utilizing WNetAddConnection2, resides within the NetworkConnection constructor:

var result = WNetAddConnection2(
    netResource, 
    credentials.Password,
    userName,
    0);

// Error handling: Check for non-zero result and throw Win32Exception if necessary.

Practical Example

This example demonstrates a basic usage scenario:

public class Program
{
    public static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        // Establish connection using custom credentials.
        using (var connection = new NetworkConnection(@"\server\share", new NetworkCredential("domain\username", "password")))
        {
            // Access and manipulate the network share.
            // ...
        }
    }
}

This method offers granular control over the connection process, enabling flexible handling of various scenarios and customized credential provision. Remember to implement proper error handling and resource cleanup within the Dispose method.

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