Shared folder in a Windows 2012 virtual machine is not accessible over the network

Products

• VMware vSphere ESXi

Issue/Introduction

• Cannot access a shared folder in a Windows 2012 virtual machine from other machines in the network.
• A shared folder with appropriate permissions in a Windows 2012 virtual machine is not accessible over the network
• You see an error similar to:
  
  Windows cannot access ip_address\folder_name
You do not have permission to access ip_address\folder_name. Contact your network administrator to request access.

Environment

• VMware vSphere ESXi 5.1
• VMware vSphere ESXi 5.0

Cause

This issue occurs if the Audit object access GPO is enabled on the shared folder and the shared folder resides on a hot-pluggable device.

 

Notes:

• In ESXi, HotPlug capability is enabled by default.
• This issue may occur on a physical Windows 2012 machine if a hot-pluggable device is used (for example, a USB device).
• This issue does not occur in a physical Windows 2012 machine with an attached SCSI disk because this disk is not hot-pluggable.

Resolution

This is not a VMware issue. If you require further information about this issue, contact Microsoft Support.

• Windows Server 2012 is supported in ESXi 5.0 Update 1 or later. For more information, see the VMware Compatibility Guide. 
  
  If you are unable to apply the Microsoft hotfix, use one of the workarounds below:
• Disable the Audit object access GPO. For more information, see the Microsoft Technet article Configuring Audit Policies.
• Disable the HotPlug capability on the virtual machine. For more information, see Disabling the HotAdd/HotPlug capability in ESXi/ESX 4.x and ESXi 5.0 virtual machines (1012225).