Fix: The Network Path Was Not Found - Error Code 0x80070035

From issues with the network connection to several errors, connecting to another device through the network is not always easy.

The Network Path Was Not Found error with code 0x80070035 is mostly seen whenever you enter the wrong network name, or the access is blocked by some means.

Table of Contents

How to Solve The Network Path Was Not Found Error

If there are multiple devices in the network, make sure you are connecting to the correct one with permissions. You also should check if the network is up and running and the IP is allocated to the correct subnet mask for the device you are trying to connect.

Similarly, you should enter the correct name or IP address of the target device if you are trying to connect manually. A small spelling error or using a username instead of the device name will lead the system to show this error.

You can find the accurate device name and IP address in the following ways:

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type cmd to open the Command prompt in the target computer.
Type ipconfig /all and press Enter.
Note the Host Name and IPv4 address.
Press Windows + ‘R’ to open Run and type the name or IP after two backward slashes (\\DESKTOP-*******).

If the error still appears, let’s move on to the fixes right away.

Check Network Discovery

It may be possible that network discovery and file sharing are not enabled in the target computer. If such is the case, turning it on should fix the issue.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and enter control to open the Control panel.
Select Small icons as viewing mode and Select Network and Sharing Center.
Click on Change advanced sharing settings.
Expand Private (current profile) and check the Turn on network discovery and Turn on file and printer sharing boxes.
Do this for Guest or Public and All Networks as well.
Under All Networks, find Choose media streaming options.
Click Turn on Media Streaming. Some systems may require you to turn this on to make the network discoverable.

See if it solves the issue. You should also keep the target device logged in. Trying to connect to a logged-off device can also show this error.

Disable Firewall

Windows Firewall may sometimes prevent from connecting with the devices through the network. It might also block specific domains identifying them as threats. As a result, you will see this error.

You should try turning off the firewall to resolve the issue.

Open Control Panel.
Choose Small icons to view the settings.
Click on Windows Defender Firewall.
Find Turn Windows Defender Firewall on or off.
Check the Turn off Windows Defender Firewall (not recommended) box for both Private and Public network settings.

Connect to the device and see if the problem is solved now. In some cases, you may have to disable the Internet Security and Antivirus as well. You can do this by opening their respective interface.

Modify Windows Credentials

When you connect to some servers using their username and password, Windows stores them in Windows Credential. If you try to communicate with it again, the system looks and uses the same credential.

The problem arises when the target device changes the credentials, but Windows has not yet modified it in your system. Hence, you may be trying to connect to the system with unmatched credentials.

In such a case, you should either update the credentials or remove all the saved ones.

Open Control Panel and select Small icons to view the settings.
Click on Credential Manager.
Select Windows Credentials and click on the listed credential.
Click Edit.
Type the new User name and password and click Save.
If it does not work out, select the credential one by one and click Remove.

Now, try communicating with the server or device again. You can also add a new credential on your own if the system did not add it automatically.

In the Windows Credentials, Click on Add a Windows Credential.
Type the Network address, User name, and Password.
Click OK to save the settings.

Try to connect again and see if the issue is now resolved.

Modify Security Policies

The local network authentication policy may be preventing your system from connecting through the network. Or the server only supports a specific authentication. So, you can try changing security policies and modifying the authentication protocol to solve the issue.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and enter secpol.msc to open Local Security Policy.
Navigate to Local Policies>Security Options.
Find Network security: LAN Manager authentication level and double-click on it.
Select LM & NTLM – use NTLMv2 session security if negotiated. It will allow the system to use any of the three authentications.
Click Apply and OK to save the settings.

See if it fixes the error. If not, you can try to allow authentication to insecure guest as well as unsigned communication.

Open the Run dialog box and type gpedit.msc to open Local Group Policy Editor.
Navigate to Computer Configuration>Administrative Templates>Network>Lanman Workstation.
Find Enable Insecure Guest Logons.
Set it to Enable.
Similarly, navigate to Windows Settings>Security Settings>Local Policies>Security Options.
Find Microsoft network server: Digitally sign communications (always).
Set it to enable.

See if you can connect to the target device or server now.

Use SMB1 Protocol

You can also enable the SMB1 protocol that helps to share files through the network using lower security. The newer and default SMBv3 has upgraded security protocols that may have prevented you from accessing the device.

Press Windows + ‘S’ and type Windows Features in the search box.
Click on Turn Windows Features on or off.
Find SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support.
Check the box and click OK to save it.

Now, you should find the error gone. However, since it has several security vulnerabilities, we recommend you disable it after completing the task.

Enable Reliable Multicast Protocol

If the file is being accessed by another device in the network, then you may receive the error while trying to get to it. So, you should enable the reliable multicast protocol that allows the shared files to be used by multiple devices.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type ncpa.cpl to open Network Connections.
Right-click on the Ethernet adapter and select Properties.
Click on the Install option.
Select Protocol and click on Add.
Choose Reliable Multicast Protocol and click OK.

See if the network error is resolved now.

Disable Hidden Network Adapters

If there are hidden network adapters in the target device, they may be using the IP address. This will prevent the adapter you are trying to use for communication from using that IP. As a result, you will see the error.

So, you will have to disable these hidden adapters.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type devmgmt.msc to open Device Manager.
Click on the View menu and check Show hidden devices.
Expand the Network Adapters.
Right-click on an adapter that has a bit faded icon and select Uninstall device.
Do this for all the adapters leaving only one left on the list.

Now, restart your computer and try to access the device again.

Change NetBIOS Setting

Sometimes, you may not be able to access the device because the two systems are on different LANs. So, enabling NetBIOS over TCP/IP allows the system to access the device remotely from any network.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type ncpa.cpl to open Network Connections.
Right-click on the Ethernet adapter and select properties.
Choose Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click Properties.
Go to Advanced settings.
Navigate to the WINS tab and check the Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP box at the bottom.
Click OK to save the settings.

See if the problem still persists.

Update or Reinstall Network Driver

The network adapter driver may also be malfunctioning, preventing the system from communicating through the network. In such a case, you should move to update or reinstall the network driver.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type devmgmt.msc to open Device Manager.
Expand Network adapters and double-click on the Ethernet device.
Go to the Drivers tab and click Update Driver.
Select Search Automatically for Drivers. You can also manually install the driver by downloading the latest one from the manufacturer’s website.
If the problem began after updating the driver, click Roll Back Driver.
Similarly, if it did not work out, click on Uninstall Device. Upon restart, the system will install the driver automatically.

Restart Network Service

The network communication is handled by a few network system services in Windows. If the service is corrupted or not working properly, you will be unable to connect with the device or server, hence displaying the error.

So, you should restart the service.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type services.msc to open the Services window.
Find TCP/IP Net BIOS Helper and double-click on it.
Change the Startup type to Automatic and click Start.
Save the change and restart your PC.

Try once again and see if you are able to establish the connection now.

Delete MSLicencing Registry Key

If you see this error while trying to connect to a remote desktop, you can delete the MSLicencing registry key. It stores the configurations and temporary Client Access Licence. So, if the cache in the registry is hindering the connection, deleting it should fix the issue.

Make sure to backup your registry before making changes to it.

Press Windows + ‘R’ and type regedit to open Registry Editor.
Go to Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSLicencing.
Find HardwareID and delete it.

Reboot your system and observe whether the problem is gone now.

Edit Host File

Whenever you try to connect to a target server or device, the device first looks for the hostname and details in the Hosts file. So, you can try to force the PC to connect with the particular server by entering the IP address and domain name. It can resolve the issue if the system is not able to find the host on its own.

Press Windows + ‘E’ to open File explorer.
Navigate to C:Windows\System32\drivers\etc.
Find hosts and open it with notepad.
Enter the IP address and domain name of the server after it.
Save the file.

Try connecting again and notice whether the issue appears again.

Flush DNS

If nothing works out for you, you can try to reset the DNS and network of your system.

Press Windows + ‘R’ to open the Run Dialog box.
Enter cmd and press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to open Command Prompt with administrative privilege.
Type and execute the following command individually.
- ipconfig /release
- ipconfig /flushdns
- ipconfig /renew
Restart your PC and see if the connection can be made now.
If not, run the following commands again one by one.
- ipconfig /flushdns
- nbtstat -r
- netsh int ip reset
- netsh winsock reset

The error should be resolved now.

Fix: The Network Path Was Not Found – Error Code 0x80070035