How do I change the user I am logged in with on a Network Share?

You can override stored credentials for shares in Windows via the Control Panel. I believe this should be possible since around Windows 2000, or at least XP. However, the names of these functions are different in all versions. I am using names from Windows 7 in this post.

  • Open your account page in User Accounts and Family Safety.

    (Click your image in the start menu, or navigate through control panel).

  • In the left hand side panel, select Manage your credentials.

  • Under Windows Credentials:

    • If the server in question has an entry, delete it.

      (Most likely it will not be present, if you haven't been here before).

    • Select Add a Windows Credential.

    • Enter the server (e.g. \\10.0.0.2\myShare).

    • Enter new desired credentials.

Now, when navigating manually to \\10.0.0.2\myShare, it will not use the old credentials any more.


Are you mapping the share to your system, or merely accessing them directly via My Computer? If you map the drive, then you can chose the link to Connect using a different user name and choose the user/password there. The 'net use' command will also allow you to access a share using alternate credentials, but not sure if it will allow you to browse the share without mapping it using those alternate credentials.


I tried to use what Matrix and Tim both suggested, but that did not work for me. In my case I ended up using

net use \\SERVER\share /delete

What this did was terminate all connections to the share drive and then when I tried to reconnect it prompted me for my username and password again.