User Folder Missing "Location" Tab - Reg Edit No Help - What To Do?

KBoy420

New member
Local time
10:50 PM
Messages
12
User Folder Missing "Location" Tab - Reg Edit No Help - What To Do?

Hi All,

I was messing around with trying to move the default location for my User Folders. I was following Brink's guide: User Folders - Change Default Location. I had a secondary drive error (where the folders were to be relocated to), requiring a format. Prior to doing so, I changed all the folders back.

Now, my "Contacts" folder no longer has a "Location" tab in its properties, so I am unable to move it back. I went into regedit to the following location:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

and was able to find the "Contacts" folder. It was incorrectly named (some jumbled mess of what appeared to be random numbers and letters). I renamed it to "Contacts" and changed the Data to "%USERPROFILE%\Contacts".

After doing all this, the "Contacts" folder is displayed in My Computer and correctly pointing to C:Users\Me - but there is no location tab in its properties so I cannot move it again to a secondary drive.

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to restore the "Location" tab?

Thanks!
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)
Hi All,

I was messing around with trying to move the default location for my User Folders. I was following Brink's guide: User Folders - Change Default Location. I had a secondary drive error (where the folders were to be relocated to), requiring a format. Prior to doing so, I changed all the folders back.

Now, my "Contacts" folder no longer has a "Location" tab in its properties, so I am unable to move it back. I went into regedit to the following location:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

and was able to find the "Contacts" folder. It was incorrectly named (some jumbled mess of what appeared to be random numbers and letters). I renamed it to "Contacts" and changed the Data to "%USERPROFILE%\Contacts".

After doing all this, the "Contacts" folder is displayed in My Computer and correctly pointing to C:Users\Me - but there is no location tab in its properties so I cannot move it again to a secondary drive.

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to restore the "Location" tab?

Thanks!

Welcome to the forum,

Have a look at option two of this tutorial,

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/18583-user-folders-restore-default-location.html

Notice the red warning box that gives instructions when a location tab is not available.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self Built
OS
Win 10 Pro x64
CPU
Intel I5-2500K @3.3GHz
Motherboard
Asrock P67 Extreme4
Memory
16GB G.Skill Ripjaws X (4x4GB)
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GeForce 750 Ti SC 2GB
Sound Card
ASUS Xonar DG 5.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound
Monitor(s) Displays
auria eq2367
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
250GB Samsung 850 EVO SSD
1TB WD Blue
1TB Hitachi
PSU
SeaSonic X 650W 80 Plus Gold
Case
Corsair Obsidian 750D
Cooling
Corsair H60, Three 140mm case fans
Keyboard
Logitech Wireless Keyboard K520
Mouse
Logitech Wireless Mouse M310
Internet Speed
Wave Broadband ~ 100 dn 5 up
Antivirus
Windows Defender, Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Edge, IE11, Chrome
Other Info
Laptop specs: HP g7-1365dx /
CPU: AMD A6-3420M APU with Radeon(tm) HD Graphics /
RAM: Crucial 8Gb (2x4Gb) /
SSD: Crucial M4-CT128M4SSD2 ATA Device/ FW 000F /
GFX: AMD Radeon HD 6520G /
OS: Windows 10 Pro x64
Thank you for this guide. I will go ahead and follow the steps to see if I can fix it. Thanks!
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)
Last edited by a moderator:

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)
Hello KBoy,

Are you copying and pasting the command below exactly as is with the exact same spacing in a elevated command prompt (right click -> Run as administrator)?

attrib +r -s -h %USERPROFILE%\Contacts /S /D


attrib(space)+r(space)-s(space)-h(space)%USERPROFILE%\Contacts(space)/S(space)/D
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Brink,

Yes, I've tried copy/paste and also typing it directly, exactly as you have indicated. Same error either way.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
No luck trying again. Still getting "Parameter format not correct -" in the elevated Command Prompt when I try and copy "attrib +r -s -h %USERPROFILE%\Contacts /S /D"

What about trying to delete the registry entry altogether and than folling the steps to reinstall it?
 
Last edited by a moderator:

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)
No, you wouldn't want to delete the registry entry.

You could also try doing a system restore using a restore point dated before you tried to move the Contacts folder and before this issue to hopefully undo and fix it.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Yes, I tried the restore and also rolling "Contacts" back to a previous version with no success. I guess at this point I'm going to have to move on and just forget about the Contacts User Folder. I probably won't use it anyway. Thanks for trying to help me out, Brink.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
Win 7 Professional (64-bit)
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo e8400 @3.2GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P5K Deluxe WiFi
Memory
4GB Corsair DDR2 (800MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD6770
Sound Card
ASUS Onboard HiFi Sound
Hard Drives
C: 300GB
F: 700GB
G: 280GB
PSU
BFG 650W
Case
Antec P182
Cooling
ASUS Super Cooler (CPU)
You could also create a new adminsitrator account to use instead, and copy what you want from the old account to the new account.
 

My Computer My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
I found this discussion while trying to figure out why my location tab disappeared from my folder properties after I did folder relocation.

Turns out that after relocating a folder, Windows Explorer doesn't show the pointer to that file any more and the Location tab goes away (from within WE).

Hit the start button, click the user name, and then a window with folders will open. Check the properties of the folders in that window and you'll find the location tab.
 

My Computer My Computer

OS
Windows 7 x64 home premium
CPU
Intel core i5-2500k
Motherboard
Asus P8Z68-V Pro
Memory
2x4GB G.Skill DDR3-1333, 2x2GB AData DDR3-1333
Graphics Card(s)
HD3000 graphics
Sound Card
on board
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung 19" syncmaster
Screen Resolution
1280x1024
Hard Drives
Intel 80 GB X25-M SSD
Samsung HD321KJ 320 GB SATA
Samsung HD204UI 2.0 TB SATA
WD 1.5 TB Green eSATA in an external NexStar enclosure
PSU
Corsair HX520W
Case
Antec Solo
Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212+ with dual fans
Keyboard
MS Natural Ergonomic 4000
Mouse
Logitech
Internet Speed
RoadRunner
Back
Top