Windows Keeps Asking for Network Credentials When Accessing a Shared PC

You try to open a shared folder on another PC and Windows keeps showing Enter network credentials — and whatever you type, it loops or says the username or password is wrong.

Why: Reaching a shared PC means signing in to that PC. The prompt appears because Password protected sharing is on and Windows isn’t sending a valid account from the sharing computer. The two usual traps: you’re typing your own PC’s login (or a Microsoft account) instead of an account that exists on the sharing PC, or an old, wrong credential is cached and keeps getting reused.

Fix 1: Enter the right credentials in the right format

The username and password must belong to an account on the PC you’re connecting to, not the one you’re sitting at.

1. At the prompt, type the username as PCNAME\username — for example OFFICE-DESK\neel — using the sharing PC’s computer name and a local account on it.
2. Enter that account’s password.
3. Tick Remember my credentials so you’re not asked every time.

If the sharing PC signs in with a Microsoft account, a workgroup share often can’t authenticate that — create or use a local account on the sharing PC for network access instead.

Fix 2: Clear the wrong cached credential

If Windows saved a bad username/password it will keep reusing it and looping the prompt.

1. Press Win + R, type control, press Enter to open Control Panel.
2. Go to User Accounts → Credential Manager → Windows Credentials.
3. Under Windows Credentials, find any entry for the sharing PC (its name or IP, e.g. OFFICE-DESK or 192.168.1.20), expand it, and click Remove.
4. Reconnect to the share and enter the correct credentials when prompted (Fix 1).

You can also pre-load the correct login here: Add a Windows credential, set the address to the PC name or IP, and enter the PCNAME\username and password.

Fix 3: Turn off password protected sharing (trusted home networks)

If you don’t need per-account security on a home network, turn the prompt off entirely:

1. Open Settings, then search for and open Manage advanced sharing settings.
2. Confirm the connection is Private, and under Private networks that Network discovery and File and printer sharing are on.
3. Expand All networks and turn Password protected sharing to Off.
4. Reconnect — the credentials prompt should be gone.

Only do this on a network you fully trust; with it off, anyone on the network can reach the shared folders.

FAQ

What do I put for the username — my email? No. Use a local account on the sharing PC, typed as PCNAME\username. A Microsoft-account email usually won’t authenticate to a workgroup share.

It worked yesterday and now asks again. A stale saved credential is the usual cause — remove the entry in Credential Manager (Fix 2) and reconnect.

I turned password protection off but it still asks. Clear the old cached credential in Credential Manager too — the prompt can come from a leftover saved entry rather than the sharing setting.

Sources: Microsoft Support — File sharing over a network in Windows