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Q231795: How to Automatically Close a NetBIOS Session

Article: Q231795
Product(s): Microsoft Windows NT
Version(s): winnt:4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbenv kbtool
Last Modified: 06-AUG-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

By default, unused NetBIOS sessions are disconnected after a 15-minute period of
inactivity. If you need to disconnect a NetBIOS session (such as a drive mapping
to a network resource) as soon as the program using it quits, you can do so by
using the method described below. This may be necessary with some programs
because they measure licensing by counting the connections to the server.

MORE INFORMATION
================

There is no built-in method in Windows NT to disconnect a drive mapping after a
program quits. As a workaround, you can start the program from a batch file. The
batch file maps the appropriate drive letter to the required share. Next, the
batch file runs the program that uses the shared resource. Finally, the batch
file disconnects the mapped drive.

For example:

  net use <drive>: \\<computername>\<sharename>
  <drive>:\<application>.exe
  net use <drive>: /delete

You may need to use a freeware, shareware, or third-party utility to introduce a
wait period after the "z:\<application>.exe" line so that the batch file
continues to run for a few seconds after the program quits. This allows enough
time for the program to finish closing its connections before the following
command to disconnect the connection runs.

NOTE: Although the client deletes the drive mapping, the NetBIOS session is not
ended on the server for an additional 255 seconds.

REFERENCES
==========

For additional information about NetBIOS session behavior, click the article
numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q115499 NBT SessionAlive and TCP/IP Session Termination

  Q138365 How the Autodisconnect Works in Windows NT

Additional query words:

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Keywords          : kbenv kbtool 
Technology        : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNT400search kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400
Version           : winnt:4.0
Issue type        : kbhowto

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