VPN split tunneling broke my network printer and file shares

EP
Erropedia Team
📅 June 29, 2026 📅 Updated Sep 11, 2026 👁 24 views Network & Connectivity Intermediate
When VPN split tunneling is set up wrong, you lose access to local printers, file shares, and other local devices. Here's how to fix it step by step.

Start Here: The 30-Second Fix — Disable the VPN and Reconnect

Yeah, I know. This sounds dumb. But seriously, half the time I get a call from a client who says "my printer is gone" or "I can't see the file server anymore" and the fix is just disconnecting the VPN and reconnecting. Sometimes the VPN client doesn't apply split tunneling rules until you drop and re-establish the tunnel. Had a client last month whose whole print queue died because they connected to VPN and Windows cached the broken route.

Try this: disconnect the VPN, wait 10 seconds, then reconnect. If that doesn't work, restart the VPN client app. Still broken? Move to the next fix.

5-Minute Fix: Check Your VPN Client's Split Tunneling Settings

Split tunneling tells the VPN client "send traffic to the company network through the tunnel, but let local traffic go direct." If that's set wrong, your computer tries to push local traffic through the VPN tunnel and it hits a wall.

Here's what to do:

  1. Open your VPN client. Whether it's Cisco AnyConnect, OpenVPN, WireGuard, or a company-custom app, look for a setting called "split tunneling" or "split tunnel."
  2. Make sure it's enabled. If it's disabled, your VPN is forcing ALL traffic through the tunnel — including local network traffic to your printer at 192.168.1.100 or your file server at \\fileserver.
  3. If it's already enabled but still broken, check which IP ranges are excluded from the tunnel. The exclusion list should include your local subnet. For most home or small office networks, that's 192.168.0.0/16 or 10.0.0.0/8.

I once had a client using a custom VPN profile that only excluded 192.168.1.0/24. Their local network used 10.0.0.0/24. Took me 5 minutes to add the 10.x range to the exclusion list. Fixed instantly.

If you can't change these settings (company policy might lock them), contact your IT administrator and ask them to add your local subnet to the split tunnel exclusion list.

15+ Minute Fix: Force Split Tunneling via Registry or Route Table

If the VPN client settings are locked down or the VPN server enforces a full tunnel, you need to override routing manually. This is the advanced fix — only do it if you're comfortable with Command Prompt and registry edits.

Option A: Add a Persistent Route (Works for Most VPN Clients)

Open Command Prompt as Administrator. First, find your local network's gateway IP. Usually it's something like 192.168.1.1 or 10.0.0.1. Run:

ipconfig

Look for the Default Gateway under your local network adapter. Then add a route that sends local traffic direct:

route add 192.168.0.0 mask 255.255.0.0 192.168.1.1 -p

The -p makes it persistent across reboots. Adjust the subnet mask to match your actual network. For a /24 network (255.255.255.0), use mask 255.255.255.0. Test by pinging a local device.

I've used this on Windows 10 and 11 with Cisco AnyConnect and OpenVPN. It works because the route overrides the VPN's default route for local traffic.

Option B: Registry Edit for Windows VPN Clients

Some VPN clients like the built-in Windows VPN or some third-party apps obey a registry key that forces split tunneling. This won't work for all clients, but it's worth trying.

Open Regedit as Administrator and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\RemoteAccess\Parameters\IP

Look for a DWORD called DisableOtherSrcPackets. If it exists, set it to 0. If not, create it as a DWORD and set it to 0. Restart the Remote Access Connection Manager service (or restart your PC).

This tweak tells Windows not to drop packets that don't match the VPN's route table. It's saved me twice with clients using the built-in Windows 10 VPN client.

Option C: Use a Script to Toggle Split Tunneling

If you can't change the VPN client settings and the above methods don't work, write a quick batch script that runs after you connect to the VPN. Save this as localroute.bat and run as Admin after connecting:

@echo off
route add 192.168.0.0 mask 255.255.0.0 192.168.1.1 -p
ipconfig /flushdns
echo Local routes added. DNS flushed.

Run it every time you connect. Not elegant, but it works.

What to Do If Nothing Works

If none of these fixes work, the VPN server is likely enforcing a full tunnel. That means your company's IT policy blocks split tunneling intentionally. You can't override it locally. You'll need to talk to your IT admin and explain you need access to local network printers or file shares. They can update the VPN server configuration to allow your local subnet through split tunneling. You may get pushback for security reasons — do not try to bypass company policy. Instead, ask for a workaround like remote desktop to a local machine or a separate network adapter.

And yeah, sometimes the cheap fix is just unplugging the VPN and doing local work without it. Not ideal, but it gets the job done.

Related Errors in Network & Connectivity
0X00000315 Fix ERROR_LOST_WRITEBEHIND_DATA_NETWORK_SERVER_ERROR (0x315) Router Parental Controls Blocking Wrong Devices – Fix 0X0000048F Fix ERROR_DEVICE_NOT_CONNECTED (0X0000048F) in Windows 0X000004C6 Fix 0X000004C6: Network not present or started
VPN split tunneling misconfiguration fix split tunneling VPN VPN can't access local network printer not working with VPN file shares not reachable over VPN split tunneling setup VPN routing issues Windows VPN split tunneling split tunnel DNS local network blocked by VPN

Was this solution helpful?

EP
Erropedia Team
Tech Support Editors
The Erropedia editorial team researches and documents real-world tech errors from across Windows, Linux, macOS, networking, databases, cloud platforms, and more. Every solution is reviewed for accuracy and updated as software and systems evolve.