KB176262 - Err Msg: The Drive or Network Connection That the Shortcut...

Article ID: 176262

Article Last Modified on 6/5/2007

Microsoft Internet Explorer 1.0
Microsoft Internet Explorer 2.0
Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0
Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.01
Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.02
Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 128-Bit Edition
Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 128-Bit Edition
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5
Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.2
Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 128-Bit Edition

This article was previously published under Q176262

SYMPTOMS

When you start Internet Explorer, double-click an Internet shortcut, or view a shell folder, you may receive one of the following error messages:

This Internet shortcut cannot be opened because it failed to run.

Unable to open Internet Shortcut "%1".

The drive or network connection that the shortcut " refers to is unavailable. Make sure that the disk is properly inserted or the network resource is available, and then try again.

Additionally, you may receive the following prompt when you try to drag a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) link to the Links toolbar:

Windows cannot create a shortcut here. Do you want the shortcut to be placed on the desktop instead?

CAUSE

This behavior can occur if the Windows\Favorites\Links folder is missing.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this behavior, use either of the following methods:

Install Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01. For information about how to obtain Internet Explorer 4.01, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
177485 Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01 Available
Re-create the Links folder by quitting Internet Explorer, restarting your computer, and then starting Internet Explorer.

NOTE: You may need to re-create any Internet shortcuts you added before you restored the Links folder.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information about Internet shortcuts, see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

175306 Unable to View Internet Shortcuts

168124 How to Create a Shortcut to the Current Web Page

A shell folder is a resource on your local hard disk or local area network (LAN) that can be accessed using the "File:" protocol (for example, "file://c:\windows" or "file://\\<path>\webpage.htm," where <path> is the full Universal Naming Convention (UNC) name path to the Webpage.htm file).

Additional query words: 4.00

Keywords: kberrmsg kbenv KB176262