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[jmcomp124]

My HTPC is connected to another machine (Media Server) via 802.11b wireless where all the music is stored in an array of disks (D, E, F, G, H, I). The drives in the Media Server are mapped from my HTPC using Windows Map Network Drive. I have imported all the music files into the Media Center library by doing File->Library -> Import Media. However, when I try to play a song, Media Center signals an error that the selected path is no longer available. The only way I can play the song, is by going through window explorer on my HTPC and navigating to the directory where the song is and wake up the drive. Note that the media server is up and running but the drives are not running. There is a small latency before a request comes in and the drive starts.
Once the drive is up and running, Media Center plays the track. Is there a timeout setting somewhere in Media center that would wait for a longer time before concluding that the path is not valid ? The process becomes tedious when the songs I want to play are across drives and I have to go into each directory through explorer before playing the track.
Does anyone else have a similar problem ?
Thanks,
-Jai

[AndyCircuit]

Hi,
This is not a MC issue. Windows disconnect network drives after 15min without access by default (2k and XP) Windows knows, but not the other applications. There is a command to change the value, but I can't recall right now. You can also search the registry for 'autodisconnect' and alter the value manually (two entrys) You have to do this on both machines.
Hope this helps
AC

[jmcomp124]

AC,
Excellent diagnosis. Thanks for your help. I think you are right. I will try it this evening and report back. Here is some info from MS support on autodisconnect.
Thanks,
-Jai



INFORMATION
Any file, print, named pipe, or mail slot session that does not have any activity is automatically disconnected after the AutoDisconnect time has expired; the default for the AutoDisconnect time is 15 minutes. When the session is disconnected, one of the ten connections becomes available so that another user can connect to the Windows XP system. Therefore, lowering the AutoDisconnect time can help to reduce some of the problems that users may encounter with the ten-connection limit or the five-connection limit on a system that is not used heavily for server purposes.

You can configure the AutoDisconnect time by running the following command from a command prompt:
net config server /autodisconnect:time_before_autodisconnect

Specify the time in minutes.

The Windows Server service is self-tuning; normally the server configuration parameters are autoconfigured (calculated and set) each time you start Windows XP. If you run net config server in conjunction with the /autodisconnect, /servcomment or /hidden options, the current values for the automatically tuned parameters are displayed and written to the registry. After these parameters are written to the registry, you cannot tune the Server service by using the Networks tool in Control Panel. If you change any of the Server service settings, Windows XP can no longer automatically tune the Server service for your new configuration. To avoid losing the Server service's automatic self-tuning capability, make the change through Registry Editor instead from a command line or Control Panel Network.

All logical drive, logical printer, and transport level connections combined from a single computer are considered to be one session; therefore, these connections only count as one connection in the ten- connection limit. For example, if a user establishes two logical drive connections, two Windows sockets, and one logical printer connection to a Windows XP system, one session is established. As a result, there will be only one less connection that can be made to the Windows XP system, even though three logical connections have been established.

The only way system A will have multiple sessions to another system, system Z, is if system A is running services that create logical connections to system Z. For example, if a user is logged on to system A as guest and a service is running on system A under the user1 account, and both the user and the service (as user1) establish connections to system Z, two sessions are established. Each logon session that uses the Server service counts against the connection limit.

Per development: The connection limit refers to the number of redirector-based connections and is enforced for any file, print, named pipe, or mail slot session. The TCP connection limit is not enforced, but it may be bound by legal agreement to not permit more than 10 clients.