User Profile Folder - Change User Account Folder Name

How to Change the User Folder Name of a User Profile in Windows 7​

   Information

Normally, you could change your account name in User Accounts from the Control Panel (icons view), but that still would not change your accoun's user profile folder name in C:\Users.

This will show you how to change your account name and change the user profile folder name of any user account, including the built-in Administrator account (if enabled), in Windows 7 without losing anything in that user account. This will affect the user account's name for the C:\Users\(user-name) folder, Start Menu, Log on screen, Welcome screen, security permissions, etc......

You must be logged in as an administrator, and is a different account than the account you are changing the name of to be able to do this tutorial.

   Warning

Since editing a user profile and the registry can mess up Windows 7 if a mistake is made, it is highly advisable to create a restore point before doing this tutorial. This way if you make a mistake, you will be able to simply do a system restore to select and go back to this restore point to undo the mistake.

Here's How:

1. Log on to the user account (ex: Old Name) that you want to change the name of.

2. Save the current theme (ex: Old Name) for this user account. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: This is so that you will be able to change the theme back to this current theme in step 21 below later if you like.

3. If you have any files or folders in your C:\Users\(user-name) profile folder that are set to be shared, then you will need to temporarily set them to not be shared for now. After you finish renaming the user profile folder name, you could set them to be shared again in step 23 below.

4. Log off the user account that you want to change the name of. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: If you do not have another administrator account to use, then create a new administrator account first, then log off. When finished with the tutorial, you can delete this newly created account.

5. Log on to an administrator account that is not the user account that you want to change the name of.

6. Open Windows Explorer, navigate to C:\Users, open the Users folder, right click on the user profile folder (ex: Old Name) that you want to change the name of, and click on Rename. (see screenshot below)

7. Type in the name (ex: New Name) that you want this user account's folder to have now and press Enter. Close the Windows Explorer window. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: If you are not able to rename the user folder for some reason (ex: in use), then boot into Safe Mode and try again.

8. If prompted, click on Continue and Yes (UAC) to approve renaming the user folder.

9. Open the Start Menu, and type regedit in the search box and press Enter.

10. If prompted by UAC, then click on Yes.

11. In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList

12. In the left pane of regedit, expand Profilelist, and select each long number S-1-5-.... key one by one until your see the user account name (ex: Old Name) that you want to change the name of included in the Data column of ProfileImagePath in the right pane. (see screenshot above)

13. In the right pane of the long number S-1-5-.... key for the user account (ex: Old Name) that you want to change the name of, right click on ProfileImagePath, and click on Modify. (see screenshot below.

14. Change only the name (ex: Old Name) in the full path to the name (ex: New Name) that you want for the user account, and click on OK. (see screenshot below)

15. Close regedit.

16. Press the Windows + R keys to open the Run dialog, type netplwiz, and click on OK. (see screenshot below)

17. Check the Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer box, select the user account's old name (ex: Old Name), and click on the Properties button. (see screenshot below)

18. Change both the User name and Full name to the same new name (ex: New Name) from step 7 above, and click on OK. (see screenshot below)

19. Click on OK, and Restart the computer to apply. (see screenshot below step 17)

20. Log on to the now completely renamed user account (ex: New Name) from step 1 above.

21. When you log on to the renamed user account (ex: New Name) for the first time, you will notice that the desktop background wallpaper is now solid black. This is normal. Change the theme from the black Unsaved Theme to the theme (ex: Old Name) that you saved in step 2 above to restore the saved theme. (see screenshot below)

22. If you had to create a new administrator account at step 4 above to do this tutorial with, then you can now delete this newly created account if you like. This is not the New Name account.

23. If you had to set files to not be shared in step 3 above, then you can set them to be shared again if you like.

24. If you had Windows set to automatically log on to a user account at startup, then you can set that while logged on to an administrator account again if you like.




That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

---

• Fix "The User Profile Service failed the logon. User profile cannot be loaded." Error in Windows 7
• How to Fix the Error "Your user profile was not loaded correctly! You have been logged on with a temporary profile."
• How to Rename the Windows 7 Guest Account
• How to Rename the Windows 7 Built-in Administrator Account
• How to Create a User Account in Windows 7​
• How to Change Your User Account Picture in Windows 7
• How to Create a Password for a Windows 7 User Account
• How to Change a User Account Type in Windows 7
• How to Change the Default Location of Windows 7 User Folders
• How to Restore the Default Location of Windows 7 User Folders
• How to Change the Windows 7 Default User Folder Icons
• How to Change the Default Location of a User Profile in Windows 7 and Vista
• How to Add or Remove "User Folder" from Desktop Context Menu
• How to Create User Accounts on another Partition or Disk During Windows 7 Installation

 

[VistaKing]

I DIDN'T DO STEP 8 - 27 (TILL THE END) cause my internet didn't work on the safety mode and I couldn't see this website page....

I restarted my computer, pressed F8 and clicked SAFETY MODE and thats it.
Then I went to C:\Users then right-clicked the old name folder thingy and clicked RENAMED, I've renamed it to the name I want BUT after shutting down and logging on in to the account I've just renamed, it says that it is in a TEMPORARY PROFILE!

What do I do?????? I thought I've lost everything when I didn't read it was just a temporary profile :'(
but HOW DO I TURN IT BACK TO HOW IT WAS? >.< Help!

Open up Regedit

Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList tell me the SIDS you see. Take a look at where the ProfilePath leads to on the right hand side .

 

[MysteriousHuman]

Vista King,

Thanks for your reply!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I did as what you said however I'm not so sure what SIDS are but I've taken a screenshot of it just incase.. and I don't know where the ProfilePath is (lol)

 

[VistaKing]

Give me the screen shots of the sid that ends in .bak and the one without it with the same exact number.

 

[MysteriousHuman]

Vista King,
here you go

 

[VistaKing]

Delete the folder without the .bak first then the folder with the .bak rename it and just remove the .bak from it then in the right hand side under STATE right click and choose modify input the number zero 0 click Ok and close the registry and restart the PC.

 

[MysteriousHuman]

Vista King,

I did as what you said, after I restarted my PC its still the same still in a 'temporary profile'
do you think this will only last a few hours, then after that when I log on in, it'll be back to normal again? cause it says 'temporary'.. im not sure D:

 

[VistaKing]

Make sure the one with the .bak on the right side where it says State it has the value of 0 . Right click on State choose Modify and type in zero(0) click Ok . Then delete the number without the .bak then rename the key with the .bak and just remove the .bak at the end.

User Profile Error - Logged on with a Temporary Profile

 

[MysteriousHuman]

Vista King,

I did what you said again, this time I had to do it again; delete the number w/o the .bak and the one with the .bak i changed its value to 0 and renamed it.

but hey thanks for the link! i'll have a look at it

 

[VistaKing]

You're welcome . Hopefully you get it fixed.

 

[MysteriousHuman]

Vista King,

i have to say THANK YOU for all the effort of helping me!!!!!!!!!!! >.<

 

[VistaKing]

Vista King,

i have to say THANK YOU for all the effort of helping me!!!!!!!!!!! >.<

Did you get it fixed?

 

[AndarielHalo]

I did this and it apparently worked, however, the Old Name still shows up in the Task Manager under the Processes tab User Name.

 

[Brink]

Hello AndarielHalo,

This would be normal as per the blue note box at the top of the tutotial. The original name will always be tied to the user account.

 

[Jesperaudi]

Hi Many thanks for this tutorial. I had a few issues in ensuring I could rename the folder (viz sharing etc) but I got there with your tutorial so many thanks

Jesper

 

[Brink]

Hello Jesper, and welcome to Seven Forums. I'm happy to hear it was able to help.

 

[charli1]

It works like a sharm,
any posibilities to make a script on this?

 

[Brink]

Hello Charli, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Not sure it's possible since it's dealing with unique user accounts per system.

 

[Don D]

Hello, just found your site today. Had almost given up on being able to change previous owners name in User Profile name. This work perfectly. Thank you so much and I look forward to spending a lot of time here. Don

 

[thanks2you]

Joined to say thank you!

Hey, Brink! I joined to give you a huge thanks, as well as to all the contributing members of this forum.

I'm brand new to Windows 7 (been hanging on to XP since 2004) - but now I find myself doing searches for the simplest functions. This forum has been an amaaaazing resource. Just wanted to say I'm impressed by the clarity, thoroughness, and simplicity of your guide. Thank you!

One more note: in case anyone else has trouble with getting into safe mode using F8, option 2 on your safe mode guide worked for me. (Tapping F8 somehow got me to this screen. I have no idea what that is ).

Thanks again! Really appreciate your hard work. : )

 

[Brink]

Hello thanksyou, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Thank you for posting back with your findings. That screen is your UEFI/BIOS screen. Some motherboards will have their own keys to press instead. Usually it will very briefly display what keys to press for what at boot.