First, it's important to understand that the creation of file shares is a part of the Windows Server 2003 Server service. However, the Server service starts before the iSCSI Initiator does. That basically means that the system is trying to put the cart before the horse—the Server service can't create file shares for the iSCSI Initiator if the iSCSI Initiator isn't available.

Without the iSCSI service, the Server service can't start file shares. Therefore, you need to make the Server service dependent on the iSCSI Initiator. To do so, follow these steps:

1. On the server experiencing the problem, open a command prompt by going to Start | Run.
2. In the Open text box, enter cmd, and press [Enter].
3. Enter sc config LanManServer depend= MSiSCSI, and press [Enter].

This fixes the first part of the problem, but you're not finished yet. You also need to make sure that your iSCSI volume connections are persistent. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Go to Start | Control Panel, and double-click the iSCSI Initiator.
2. On the Initiator Settings tab, click the Bind Volumes button, and click OK.

Your volumes should appear as you expect after the next reboot. For more information, check out Microsoft Knowledge Base article 870964.