Windows 10: 'This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions' on Windows 10 Home when trying to...

My fathers PC has recently started coming up with an error when you try to access a particular network drive via Windows Explorer. The drive is one of 4 network shares on an SMB box I setup the better part of 10 years ago (2 shares in use, 2 shares are backup copies of the first two drives mounted read only and rsynced nightly)

The window title is "Restrictions" and the content is "This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator."

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  The drive does not show up in Windows Explorer (under This PC for example, should be showing 5 shares as I've mounted "backup" twice - Z: and G
  
  
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  If I type "Z:\" in to the directory bar and hit enter, it gives the restriction error. This is the same for every directory under Z:\ - for example "Z:\Backups".
  
  
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  If I try opening a file using say, Notepad, [I can type "Z:\" in the file name field and it will populate it with the directories in Z:](https://i.imgur.com/2GyWZ6A.png). I can happily open a file (say Z:\Backup\test.txt) in Notepad using this method.
  
  
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  If I open a file in a program, it then shows up in Recent Files no problem at all.
  
  
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  If I map the exact same SMB share to another drive letter - for example "G:\" - I can use it as per normal.
  
  
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  If I map another share to Z: - for example \smb\totallydifferentshare\ - I get the restrictions fault. This is even if I map it to another share that is currently working fine on another drive letter. This leads me to believe it is the drive letter itself that is restricted, not the network share or an SMB permissions issue.
  

The only thing that has changed in recent times is that he had to install some "Government software" as part of some advisory board he is on. The software is to enable you to view documents (mostly just PDF), but disables everything else while you do so - can't print, can't access your hard drive, can't screenshot, etc etc. I have no idea what it's called and he can't remember. My assumption is that the software used the drive letter Z: in some way and blocked access to it as part of it's operation, and that change has not been reversed when the software was uninstalled. I have no idea where / how this restriction has been placed however. The rest of the PC works as before and shows no other changes / ill effects of whatever it was he had to have installed. My batch file resets all the network shares on boot so will have remapped Z: to the SMB share next time he rebooted.

I have used registry editor to search for "Z:" and the only entries it finds are recent file lists and the like. "NoSetFolders" set to "1" is apparently part of a group policy that blocks Windows Explorer from accessing a drive letter, but I can't find any registry entry of "NoSetFolders" that is set to "1"... Just "Not Set" in a heap of different places.

Any thoughts would be tops!

tl;dr For some reason the drive letter "Z:" can not have directories browsed in Windows Explorer. Files can be opened, directories are obviously accessible as they populate the "file" bar in prompts, but for whatever reason I just can't browse folders on Z:* using Windows Explorer. Possible group policy change made by Government software?

submitted by /u/theredkrawler
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:)

 

This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions


I've updated my win10 to the anniversary update and faced a problem, when I hit a link in MS Outlook 2010, the following message appears:

This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions

I run a search on the net, set my browser, firefox ver. 50.0.3 64 bit as default browser, MS Outlook 2010 as my default mail program, but nothing changed.
I tried registry corrections suggested in https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/310049/hyperlinks-are-not-working-in-outlook

but the problem stayed.

What else can I do?

 

Error Outlook 2010 This operation has been cancelled due to restrictio

Try Start, Settings, Apps, Microsoft Edge, Advanced options, Repair or Reset.

If still not resolved, see This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions.

 

This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator.

Oka...then try this:
http://www.slipstick.com/problems/this-operation-has-been-cancelled-due-to-restrictions/