Connect to the WD device by its local network address first; if Windows 11 still returns 0x80070035, use authenticated WD share access where available, or apply the guest-access compatibility settings only when the device is configured for guest SMB access.
1. Connect directly instead of through File Explorer’s Network list
- Open your router’s connected-device page and find the WD My Cloud/My Cloud Home IPv4 address.
- Press Windows key + E.
- Enter the address in File Explorer using two leading backslashes:
\\[IP Address]
- If the shares appear, open the required share. This means the storage connection works and device-name discovery is the failing part. Direct-IP access is a documented resolution for this Windows 11/WD My Cloud symptom.^1^
- To map it permanently, go to File Explorer → This PC → More (…) → Map network drive, select a drive letter, enter
\\[IP Address]\ShareName, select Reconnect at sign-in, and choose Finish.^2^
Use the WD device name rather than its IP when possible after name resolution is restored, because IP-based SMB connections can be affected by newer authentication restrictions.
2. Prefer a WD username and password
If prompted, enter credentials configured for that WD share rather than using anonymous/guest access. Remove an obsolete saved entry first from:
Control Panel → Credential Manager → Windows Credentials
Then reconnect and enter the current WD username and password. Microsoft recommends valid NAS credentials instead of enabling insecure guest logons, which can expose the computer to spoofed servers, credential interception, and malware.^3^
3. If this started with Windows 11 24H2
Press Windows key + R, enter winver, and check whether the version is 24H2. Windows 11 24H2 requires SMB signing by default on applicable editions, which can prevent access to third-party NAS devices that use unsigned or guest SMB sessions.^4^
The preferred correction is to update the WD firmware and enable authenticated access and SMB signing on the WD device if its model supports them.
If this is a My Cloud Home guest share that cannot use credentials or signing, WD identifies guest access and SMB signing as relevant to this exact 0x80070035 failure.^5^ As a less-secure compatibility workaround:
- Right-click Start → Terminal (Admin).
- Run:
Set-SmbClientConfiguration -EnableInsecureGuestLogons $true -Force
Set-SmbClientConfiguration -RequireSecuritySignature $false -Force
Get-SmbClientConfiguration |
Select-Object EnableInsecureGuestLogons,RequireSecuritySignature
- Restart Windows and retry the share.
This weakens SMB protection and should only be used on a trusted private home network when authenticated access is unavailable. Microsoft explicitly discourages insecure guest access and disabling signing.^6^
To reverse those changes later:
Set-SmbClientConfiguration -EnableInsecureGuestLogons $false -Force
Set-SmbClientConfiguration -RequireSecuritySignature $true -Force
4. If neither the name nor IP address works
On the trusted home network:
- Open Settings → Network & internet → Wi-Fi/Ethernet → connected network.
- Set Network profile type to Private.
- Open Settings → Network & internet → Advanced network settings → Advanced sharing settings.
- Under Private networks, enable:
- Network discovery
- File and printer sharing
- Press Windows key + R, run
services.msc, and set these services to Automatic and start them:
- Function Discovery Provider Host
- Function Discovery Resource Publication
- SSDP Discovery
- UPnP Device Host
These settings restore Windows LAN discovery; they are not required merely to test a direct \\IP-address path.^2^
Do not enable SMB 1.0 as a general fix. If direct-IP access still fails, verify that the WD device is online from another device and use its local management interface to check firmware, share credentials, and SMB/signing support.
References
- Cannot Access WD Drive on my Network - Microsoft Q&A
- [Windows 11](https://support.microsoft.com/windows/experience/connectivity-networking/file-sharing-over-a-network-in-windows)
- Access Denied when you access an SMB file share in Windows
- Control SMB signing behavior
- Resolve My Cloud Home Share Access Failure Error Code 0x80070035 ...
- How to enable insecure guest logons in SMB2 and SMB3