Error: Cannot mount ISO image from network folder?

Steve06

New Member
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102
Hello,
under Win 8 Pro 64-bit, I discovered the following oddity: When I try to mount an ISO image using the Windows' built-in mounting function, it works when the the ISO is located on a local drive, but NOT if it is on a network drive (linked to my NAS). The latter case yields an error saying that mounting failed without further explanation. (YES, the Iso file type is associated to Windows Explorer and YES, there is a spare drive letter after the local drive letters; actually my local drives are from B: (DVD) to D:, and the network drives are between F: and Z:, so that a mounted ISO receives a virtual drive at E: .)

Can anybody confirm this behaviour and possibly shed light on it, or - even better - provide a better solution than installing third-party mounting software like DaemonTools? Is it a bug that Microsoft will hopefully address soon?

Best,
Steve
 

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The latter case yields an error saying that mounting failed without further explanation.
Does the ISO actually get mounted despite the error? I've seen this. Check in Computer.

If not CTRL+C the exact error text and paste here.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)
When I click on Computer in Windows Explorer, I can confirm that network folder ISOs are not mounted. Tried with several ISOs of different size and it always fails. With local ISOs it always works.

EDIT: Added a screenshot of the error in German. Do not know to what exact error this translates in the English version.
 

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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
The people in the forum at MS Technet Mounting ISO : "sorry, there was a problem mounting the file" are not any further we that problem than we are. At least I could find confirmation that this is a pervasive issue and I am not alone with it.

It has been suggested in that and other threads that the "sparse" property of an ISO could be the culprit. I checked this with the

Code:
fsutil sparse queryflag <PathToYourISO>

command in one case of an ISO on a network drive and can confirm that the file was not marked as sparse.

I have also checked if it works when I access the NAS folder not by its network drive letter (N: ), but via its network address \\NAS\\..., but it makes no change.

At this point, it seems there is no solution unless you use third-party software, as we used to do before Windows 8. The bottom line is that the mounting feature is not a real improvement of the OS as it is buggy or not well designed. This is even more astonishing as nowadays many users have NAS drives in their home.

 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Well, there's nothing wrong with using third party tools that have worked for years :)

Meanwhile, let's check if the problem persist in safe mode with networking.
And here's the link you should be able to understand better than me :) Anything there?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)
I can confirm the problem presists in safe mode with networking.

I already knew this link you indicated. It's about another common problem with the mounting function, namely that you need to have spare drive letter after your local drives. This is not the issue for me as I made space by moving the DVD drive to letter B and it actually works to mount from a local drive.

Let's wait to see who else stumbles upon this issue or maybe even has a solution?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
It's kind of hard to troubleshoot this issue remotely... Another angle to pursue is NTFS permissions. When you copy a problematic ISO to the local NTFS drive, do you have the same problem? You original post doesn't clarify this.

Also, please download Process Monitor and start monitoring just before you mount. Stop after getting the error. Upload the log to SkyDrive/Google Drive/Dropbox.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Unfortunately, I can't see the culprit in the log, and neither is my colleague from another forum who's better at analyzing procmon logs than me. It's entirely possible that the real culprit is your NAS, so you'll have to use third-party software for mounting images. However, my colleague suggested trying KB2686098, so I pass his recommendation to you.

Another long shot is to uninstall third party antivirus and firewall software for troubleshooting purposes. I doubt it'll produce results, given the test in the Safe Mode with Networking, but you never know.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)
The NAS is quite standard product, it's a Synology DS213+ and is up to date in terms of firmware. It's not a Windows machine, so maybe this is why it is not working. I read the KB article but do not think it applies here. It was also not clear to me what exactly it would suggest me to do except contacting the vendor.

I have no third-party AV or FW, I just use what Windows provides (and intended to keep it this way with the mounting too, but that seems asking for too much).

I will ask in the Synology forums if people encounter this issue and also see what tech support has to say about this.

Can you confirm that for your colleague it works with network drives? As a check whether it's Synology-related I will also connect this computer to a network drive on another Windows PC to test if ISO mounting then works.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
It works with network drives in general, you can see it even from the TN forum thread. But I don't know if MSFT officially supports mounting from NAS. Fishing NAS forum is a good idea, but it would be interesting to see if your system can mount from another source.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)
You are right in that it does work when mounting an ISO located on another Windows PC in the same network. It does not make difference whether that network location has a drive letter or not.

So it seems to be a NAS issue. I will fish in the NAS forum and also contact Synology support.

Thanks for your help in sorting this out.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
In the meantime, I have tested the freeware Virtual CloneDrive - it works like a charm in any circumstance, that is no matter whether the ISO is local, remote (NAS) or up your ass ;). So I cannot just put the blame on Synology. Apparently Synology and Microsoft did not join their efforts (enough) to make sure they are compatible in this respect.

I'll probably keep CloneDrive installed until there is a proper Windows solution.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Custom-built silent Mini-ITX workhorse
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3770, 4x 3.40GHz
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77E-ITX
    Memory
    2x8GB GeIL Black Dragon PC3-12800U
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000 (integrated)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo
    Hard Drives
    Intel SSD 530 240GB, Intel SSD 520 120GB, WD 1TB
    Mouse
    Lenovo Trackpoint Mouse
    Browser
    Firefox, Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Perhaps, this was not thoroughly tested on MSFT part, but again, it's not always feasible given the number of different devices. Like I said, I'd be curious to know if MSFT supports mounting from NAS.

CloneDrive worked for me for years, so there's nothing wrong with continuing to use it :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8 Pro x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion dv7t (17.3'', i7-2630QM, HD 6770M 1Gb, 8Gb RAM, 2 SSD@120Gb + 1 HDD@750Gb)
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