Should I keep My Documents on C and Videos, Music etc on D ?

whs said:

For me only My Documents had to stay on C. All others can move in my experience without any problem.

Now this I do not understand by your logic. You worry about a couple of folders on the desktop but the usually largest user folder (documents) you want to leave on C. There you lost me.

:)
Ok i see. Maybe i said it in the first posts or not: I keep My Documents on C because it's in this folder that most applications will save weired settings an so on. So it must stay with the apps, on C. I have no choice. BUT i DO create another Documents folder on D which will be "the usually largest user folder" as you say.

It's simple: everything on D except my documents which stays on C only as a container for software settings.
In doing that simple thing, whenever i backup my "Data" partition, well, ALL data is in it, including files on my desktop that-it's-bad-to-put-there.

That simple. And it allows me not to have "duplicate" user folders which is confusing, for me. Having an empty music folder, an empty pictures, an empty videos. Tsss. and having to use libraries "to hide that"..

AND i do see the advantages of your view and mine. no perfection down here :)

The thing with having "duplicate" folders for all user folders, is that some files WILL end up in the original user folder, on C... just by mistake, confusion, tiredness or not well designed software. While if there is only one folder, well you can't mistake it. So the file will be stored in that one. And will be on D for sure.

Hearing though about the default save location of libraries, that i didn't know about, must greatly reduce the possibility of mistakes. So yeah, it's details we're talking about i agree. But i also do see that it's not perfect in either case.. i'll have to digest that :)

If an application does store data in "My Documents" on the [C] drive I could lose that data if/when I restored an image.
I know/expect/understand I will lose any Program/System Configuration changes etc., whenever I restore the [C] partition.
Usually I am restoring an image because I tested a new program or system change, it didn't work, and I want to back it out completely.
Or, maybe the last Windows Patch Tuesday updates had issues, i restore an image so it's like I never installed those updates ...

whs said:

I keep My Documents on C because it's in this folder that most applications will save weired settings an so on. So it must stay with the apps, on C

Of course you keep the original documents folder on C - and all the other original folders too. And you keep those as default folders. But that does not mean that you cannot move your user folders to the HDD - which you have apparently done. Just keep the system and program generated folders in the C folders.

Btw - it is not only in Documents where programs place their repository folders. So if you have no default pictures, videos and music folders on C, you have the same problem as with documents.

OK, so i'll soon close this as it's late here and i got many good advices. I just wanna make sure i undertsood your above quote.
- move your user folders on HDD: you mean create new ones, right ? (since the original ones shouldn't move and should stay on C.)
- Just keep the system and program generated folders in the C folders.: you mean Music, Pictures, My Documents, and so on ?

Did i get it right ?

You can't be serious about backup and at the same time keep your data on the same drive (even if different partition). It does nothing to help in case of hdd failure or a virus.

I personally keep a bunch of data off the system drive, but that's just because of size constraints. Can't keep Gigs of videos, games and pix on an SSD :)
But I keep all my work data on the C: drive, just faster, more convenient and safer. I clone the C: to both an internal spinner and an external one, this way if I have an issue - all I have to do is load the clone and it's like nothing happened :)

OK thank you everybody. i'll see what i'll do. so many options here, each with its pros and cons. thanks again!
i'll mark the thread as resolved as its point was to collect opinions and that has been achieved.

cheers!

Adri

whs said:

Do you really clone or do you make images.

Technically I make an image, but not a system image, rather the entire drive.