User Profiles - Create and Move During Windows 7 Installation

How to Create User Accounts on another Partition or Disk During Windows 7 Installation ​

   Information

There are several methods to move user profiles to another disk or partition after you have installed Windows 7. The easiest way is to use Audit Mode and System Preparation Tool, both built-in Windows 7 features, to permanently move the location of the folder Users.

This tutorial shows how to relocate both Users and ProgramData to another disk or partition when doing a new, fresh and clean install of Windows 7. If you have already installed Seven, and you'd like to move those folders away from their default location in C: drive, please read first post number 22 in this thread. Follow the steps told in that post, and continue then from beginning of the page 4 in this tutorial.

When Windows 7 is installed, 5 or 6 system folders are created depending on chosen bit-version:

• PerfLogs (Performance Logs), where Windows stores performance and reliability logs
• Program Files, where applications and software are installed. Windows x86 (32-bit) stores all applications here, Windows x64 (64-bit) only native 64-bit applications
• Program Files (x86), only in Windows x64. All non-x64 applications are stored here
• Windows, which contains core operating system files and drivers
• ProgramData, where some applications store application and user specific settings and configuration files
• Users. This is the "home" of all user folders. When a new user account is created and this new user logs in first time, Windows creates a set of user specific folders Users\New_User

Moving Windows and Program Files folders is not recommend by Microsoft. However, moving both Users and ProgramData folders is safe and can save a lot of space on system disk. Pictures, mp3’s videos, documents and so on, a user folder with its subfolders can be tens, sometimes hundreds of gigabytes.

For instance, using this laptop of mine as an example, the total size of Users folder and subfolders is at the moment about 240 GB. The size of ProgramData folder is at the moment almost 18 GB. I simply could not have these folders stored in my system C: drive, there’s not enough space.

When installing Windows 7, I recommend using Windows System Preparation Tool (Sysprep) in so called Audit Mode to relocate Users and ProgramData, leaving C: drive only for Windows and applications.

   Warning

An upgraded Windows cannot be sysprepped. As this method is based in sysprepping, this tutorial is valid only for Windows setups which have not been upgraded.

This means that if you have for instance in-place upgraded Vista to Seven, you cannot sysprep. The same applies if you have upgraded from a lesser edition to a better edition, for instance from Windows 7 Home Premium to Professional.

Notice that a repair install is also an upgrade install, so if you have ever done a repair install (= in-place upgrade to same edition), you cannot sysprep.

In other words, when sysprepping an existing Windows setup it only works if the Windows was installed clean and has never been upgraded or repaired using repair install, or if it is the original pre-installed Windows.

Using this method causes Windows 7 to lose activation information, and it needs to be reactivated afterwards. If your Windows 7 is an OEM version, you might not be able to reactivate it, at least not without phone activation option.

   Warning

IE10 Users: Please read this article first: Sysprep Fatal Error With IE 10 (FIX) | System Administration

Complete tutorial as PDF: View attachment Relocate User folders during Windows 7 installation.pdf (1.22 MB)

Kari

Related Tutorials

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• How to Change the Default Location of a User Profile in Windows 7 and Vista
• How to Change the Default Location of Windows 7 User Folders
• How to Restore the Default Location of Windows 7 User Folders
• How to Free Up and Recover Hard Drive Space in Windows 7
• How to Change the User Folder Name of a User Profile in Windows 7

 

[Kari]

That is a normal Windows desktop?

If you click OK in Sysprep dialog and you have set System Cleanup Action: Enter System Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE), and Shutdown Options: Reboot, system quits audit Mode and reboots to normal (OOBE/Welcome) mode.

If you instead reboot from Start Menu, system boots back to Audit Mode.



Question: Did you reboot by clicking OK on Sysprep dialog box, or by clicking Start Menu > Restart?

To exit Audit Mode after sysprepping you have to reboot by clicking OK on Sysprep dialog, or opening command prompt and giving following command:

C:\Windows\System32\Sysprep\Sysprep.exe /oobe /reboot

Kari

 

[frodi]

I clicked cancel

 

[Kari]

It means you are still in Audit Mode. You need to exit it. Click OK. DO NOT REBOOT FROM START MENU > RESTART!

 

[frodi]

A fatal error occurred while trying to sysprep

 

[Kari]

Did you already forget my response to you earlier today:

Frodi, did you stop the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service?

The most common reason for fatal errors in relocating folders as told in this tutorial is not to read the whole tutorial .

This from very bottom of the last page of the tutorial:

Based on my own experience, sysprep does not always like Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service (WMPNetworkSvc). Reason is unknown to me. If you get an error message when trying to run the XML script, end the service and try again.

Type this to Command Prompt to stop the mentioned service and press Enter:

net stop WMPNetworkSvc

Now run the script with sysprep command once again.

Also when exiting Audit Mode (sysprepping withpout answer file), if there's fatal error it most propably is because of this WMP service. Stop the service and try again.

Kari

 

[frodi]

Yes I did stop that service, but just to make sure I stopped it again.

 

[Kari]

And still fatal error?

 

[frodi]

I am now back at that system operation tool.

 

[frodi]

Another fatal error!

 

[Kari]

If you stopped the WMP Sharing Service before clicking OK on sysprep dialog, and you still get fatal error, then I can only recommend new, fresh installation.

I can not help you with this.

Kari

 

[Britton30]

WMPN will restart every boot, stop it with the command prompt before you click OK in the SYSPREP tool.

 

[frodi]

Hi Kari, I had one last desperate attempt at a sysprep, and it worked. I am back in my comfort zone. But I do have one question. I now have 2 accounts. One my name and one with owner. They both access my accounts. Can I combine them or can I delete one?

I do thank you sincerely for all your help.

 

[Britton30]

I would make the one with your name, Administrator, then delete the Owner account.

 

[frodi]

Thanks for that Kari.

 

[Kari]

Thanks for that Kari.

That was Britton, not me but I have to agree with him.

This new user profile you got is because of this:

Every time you exit Audit Mode and boot normally for first time, it is a so called OOBE / Welcome boot. It means that the computer "thinks" Windows is booted first time ever thus stopping to ask for the initial user name and computer name. Existing user profiles are there but can not be used:

I usually use a temporary username Test at this stage.

When you then finally arrive to Welcome screen, just ignore the new user account (Test) you had to create in OOBE / Welcome and log in to your normal account:

Windows boots now to default OOBE first boot desktop, with default 800*600 resolution and default theme. All your installed applications are there, as well as your old user profiles and folders. Windows has installed the default drivers for your setup, you can update them if needed.

Now go to Control Panel > User Accounts and delete the temporary user account (in this case Test) that you just created.

Kari

 

[Parman]

I wanted to say very nice tutorial.

 

[Kari]

Thanks, Parman

 

[frodi]

Hi Kari, lol, I thought it was you. It is all getting to me, a new computer, never had SSD before, nor so much RAM. And the SSD filling up so fast, finding your great tutorial etc. It certainly gave me a lot of space back.
My old rig was failing and had to be retired. Still, I got 8 years out of that one.
You are very kind giving so much of your knowledge and time.

And thanks Britton,

I wish you all a happy Christmas and a healthy,safe and prosperous 2013.

 

[Britton30]

Thanks frodi, Christmas greeting to you too.

You might disable hibernation, it will make a file as big as your RAM. Open Elevated cmd prompt and type in the following:

powercfg -h off

Check the used SSD space before and after. I also have my page file set at 2048 MB.

 

[frodi]

Hi Briton, I have my prefetch turned off, but have not done anything to the pagefile. I looked at it and it stands at 1GB. Is there any good reason to turn it off?