and then worrying about drive N: being mapped to the right place by the time the server starts up, feed it:
\\FILERNAME\[WEBSHARE\]WWWROOT
instead. This can make life much easier down the line.
Where is the user authentication step done if I do this?
As I remember, a dialog box pops up when you do that, if the system doesn't already have your password cached.
I've no idea what happens if e.g. an NT service refers to a UNC name.