6 Ways to Overcome Enter Network Credentials in Windows 10/11

 Does Windows reject your network credentials and return the “Enter network credentials” error message, even when you are sure they are correct? Here's how to deal with it.

Network credentials on a PC are important because they prevent other people from using your computer across the network. While these features are important for protecting important files and increasing the overall security of your system, sometimes they can also cause problems.

A common problem is when the network credential manager keeps showing the “Enter network credentials” dialog, even when you enter the correct credentials. In this guide, we will give you several ways to overcome enter network credentials.

How to Overcome Enter Network Credentials

1. Change Advanced Sharing Settings

Incorrectly set Advanced Sharing settings are one of the most common causes of this error. Ideally, the PC should be allowed to manage homegroup connections. You can also use the Advanced Sharing settings page to disable sharing of password protected things, which will allow you to share files without logging in.

Here is how you can configure Advanced Sharing settings properly:

Change Advanced Sharing Settings

1. Find the network icon on your taskbar and right click on it.

2. Select Network and Internet settings from the context menu.

3. Then select Network and Sharing Center.

4. Select Change advanced sharing settings in the left pane.

5. Now, enable the IAllow Windows to manage homegroup connections (recommended) option under Homegroup connections.

6. Click Save changes (You need administrative privileges for this).

7. Now, expand the All Networks section and enable the Turn off password protected sharing option.

8. Press the Save changes button to complete the process.

After you transfer files, re-enable password-protected sharing so that other people don't get easy access to your PC.

2. Use Microsoft Account Credentials Or Computer Name

Another method to deal with the enter network credentials error is to try to log in to the target PC using the Microsoft account credentials instead of using the local username and password.

Alternatively, you can also try using the computer name you are using next to your username in the text field associated with Username. Do not include spaces, bars or other symbols between names.

If the issue is related to credentials, one of these two methods will likely help you get rid of them once and for all.

3. Add Target Computer Credentials Manually To Credential Manager

You can also try adding the targeted computer's credentials manually in the Credential Manager and see if that makes a difference. Here's how to do it:

Manually Add Target Computer Credentials To Credential Manager

1. Type “Credential Manager” into Windows Search and click Open.

2. Select Windows Credential and click Add a Windows Credential.

3. Now, add the username, computer name, and password for the computer you are trying to access. Check if you can now share files with other devices successfully.

4. Create New User Accounts On Both Devices

There are times when a user account becomes corrupted and stops you from performing certain actions. If this happens, either on the PC or the target computer, it can interrupt the file sharing process.

To fix this problem, first try switching to another user account on your own computer and see if it works. If this strategy fails, then you should create a new user account on both devices with the same username and password. Make sure both accounts have administrative privileges.

If the root of your problem is a corrupted user account, this should be enough to fix the problem.

5. Restart Credential Manager Service

The problem may also be with the Credential Manager service itself, not the targeted computer or your network device settings. In this method, we will first enable the Credential Manager service if the service is disabled.

If it is working, then we will proceed by restarting the service and see if it works. Here's what you need to do:

Restart Credential Manager Service

1. Press Win + R to open the Run box.

2. Type services.msc in the Run box and click Enter.

3. In the following window, look for Credential Manager service and right-click on it.

4. Select Properties from the context menu.

5. If the service is disabled, click the Start button to activate it.

6. If it is working, click the Stop button, wait a few seconds, then press the Start button.

7. Make sure the Startup type is set to Automatic.

8. Click Apply > OK to save changes.

Now try connecting to the targeted computer and see if you can do it without any issues.

6. Try Using Safe Mode With Networking

If the credentials you entered and all the network configurations on the system are correct, something might be wrong at the system level. In this case, you can boot into Safe Mode to determine the cause of the problem. Safe Mode starts Windows with only the basic set of drivers and applications that are essential for the operating system to work.

There are several types of Safe Mode including Minimal, Alternate Shells, Active Directory Repair, and Network. In this method, we will boot Windows into Safe Mode with Networking. This mode launches Windows with the necessary drivers and programs to connect the system to the internet or other devices over the network.

If the error encountered does not appear in Safe Mode then there is a possibility that a malware or other software issue is causing the problem. Here's what you need to do:

Try Using Safe Mode With Networking

1. Open the Start menu and click the Power button.

2. Select Restart while holding Shift key.

3. Wait for Windows to boot into recovery mode and then select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options.

4. Navigate to Startup Settings > Restart.

5. In the following window, press the F5 key on your keyboard to boot into Safe Mode with Networking.

6. After you enter Safe Mode, try to connect to the device that you previously tried to connect. If the error is not showing in Safe Mode then you might want to report this problem to the official Microsoft support team and wait for a fix from their side.

Conclusion

So that's how to overcome enter network credentials. Windows has made it easy to share files and other data across networks, but there are times when you encounter an unexpected error. Hopefully, one of the methods mentioned above can help in fixing your problem.