Windows 11 24H2 Can't Reach Your NAS or Share (0x80070035)? It's the New SMB Signing Rule

You upgraded a PC to Windows 11 24H2 and now a NAS, router USB share, or old file server won’t open:

“\\SERVER is not accessible… The network path was not found.” — error 0x80070035

…even though nothing changed on the device and other (older) PCs still reach it fine.

What actually changed: 24H2 turns on SMB signing required by default for client connections. If the NAS or appliance can’t negotiate SMB signing (common on budget NAS boxes and old firmware), Windows refuses the connection. It’s a security upgrade, not a bug.

Why the popular fixes are wrong — and dangerous: the top results tell you to enable SMB 1.0/CIFS or turn on insecure guest logons. Both are exactly what 24H2 hardened against. SMB1 is a decades-old, wormable protocol Microsoft removed for good reason, and guest access can’t satisfy the new signing requirement anyway — so those “fixes” either fail or leave you open to relay attacks.

Fix 1: Make the device support signing (the correct fix)

The right move is to bring the share up to a secure standard:

• Update the NAS/router firmware. Most vendors (Synology, QNAP, ASUS, TP-Link, etc.) shipped firmware that supports SMB2/SMB3 with signing. Apply it.
• In the NAS admin panel, enable SMB signing and disable SMBv1. Set the minimum SMB protocol to SMB2 (or SMB3) and turn on “Enable SMB signing”/“server signing.”
• Use a real account, not guest. Create a username + password on the NAS for the share and connect with those credentials (Windows 24H2 also blocks unauthenticated guest access — that’s the separate guest-access change).

Fix 2: Temporary client workaround (only if you must, and briefly)

If you genuinely can’t update the device today and need access right now, you can relax the client signing requirement — understanding it lowers your security until you fix the device:

1. Open PowerShell as administrator.
2. Run:

   Set-SmbClientConfiguration -RequireSecuritySignature $false

3. Reconnect to the share.

Re-enable it ($true) as soon as the NAS is updated. Do not re-enable SMB1 as a substitute — that’s strictly worse.

Fix 3: Rule out the plain causes of 0x80070035

0x80070035 isn’t always the signing change. Also confirm:

• The server name resolves — try the IP (\\192.168.1.50\share); if IP works but the name doesn’t, it’s DNS/NetBIOS, not signing.
• File and printer sharing is on for your Private network profile (Settings → Network → Advanced sharing settings).
• The device is actually online and on the same subnet.

FAQ

Why does it still work on my other PC? That PC is on an older Windows build (or 23H2) that doesn’t yet require signing by default. Once it updates to 24H2, it’ll hit the same wall — so fix the device, don’t rely on old clients.

Is disabling SMB1 going to break anything else? Only genuinely ancient devices need SMB1. Modern Windows, NAS and printers all speak SMB2/3. Leaving SMB1 off is the correct, supported state.

Should I disable signing on the server side instead? No. Fix the device to support signing. Turning protection off network-wide re-opens the relay/tampering risk 24H2 closed.

Sources: Microsoft Tech Community (Ned Pyle) — Accessing a third-party NAS with SMB in Windows 11 24H2 may fail, Microsoft Learn — SMB signing overview