User Profiles - Create and Move During Windows 7 Installation

Radeon962 · 05 Aug 2012

I used the guide last year when I built one of my systems and used a X25-M 80 GB SSD and a WD Blue 640 GB HDD as my Data drive. Worked fine and user data was moved to the HDD during install.

Fast forward to now and I would like to move to a larger SSD (Samsung 830 256GB). Issue is when I looked at making an image of my current SSD, both the SSD and HDD are marked as Active in Disk Management. Apparently, when I had both plugged in during the original install both the SSD and HDD become part of the Win 7 boot sequence as part of the MBR is on the HDD (and you can't boot up to Win 7 without both being plugged in)? I have been trying to figure this out, but it appears that it may have been better to only have had the SSD plugged in when I installed Win 7 and then move the user files after to the HDD.

I believe I need to run a Repair install now to remove the MBR from the HDD, but still trying to figure that out. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

In short, I want to just backup my current SSD and restore to a new SSD and not have to worry about having the HDD in the system should I want to remove it.

Britton30 · 06 Aug 2012

I think if you run a Repair Install it will put App data and Users all on one drive. Try using free Macrium and either make an image of the SSD or clone it to the new SSD.
If you have a separate data drive you can't remove it and have Windows boot. The HDD should not be marked active though. Hopefully someone will address that.

AlainCh · 08 Aug 2012

H E L P !!!

Yesterday ....I did what was in need for a NEW installation for the family PC everything went as expected..

On my laptop I did the "already installed" procedures: OOOPS !!!

Now I have TWO Users Directory: one in Data disk and the other in Sys disk.

I've lost some configuration:
The Link quickbar (I set it as quickstart having W7 not the original one)...
I lost my Tunderbird setups..( I moved all the mail and the mail setting into the DATA disk two years ago) and that's important.. so now I cannot acces as per usual my mail...
questions :
0) no system restore available so I cannot rollback. I found only one: this morning.
1) how it happens to have TWO users directory .. May I merge them? How to ?
2) I can manually reapply the proc to recover my mail accounts and so on... I would prefer to avoid it.
3) I was carefull... what may have gone wrong ??

Thanks for any help !!

Kari · 08 Aug 2012

Alain, welcome to the Seven Forums.

To have two Users folders and two ProgramData folders is totally normal; the system needs the ones in C: even it is no longer using them. I recommend you reverse the procedure using the method told in tutorial by "relocating" both Users and ProgramData back to C:, this should repair your issues.

Simply change the Folder Locations back to C: in script (answer file) and run sysprep as told in tutorial:

Code:

<FolderLocations>
<ProfilesDirectory>C:\Users</ProfilesDirectory>
<ProgramData>C:\ProgramData</ProgramData>
</FolderLocations>

Notice: Change C: to whatever drive letter you have for your system disk.

Please always do a backup before changing system setting and variables. Your case is a good example when everything could have been repaired by restoring a full backup or system image.

Kari

AlainCh · 08 Aug 2012

Oh OK thanks for the quick answer...

Yes I did the backup ... finished with "error: some cluster are missing " ???????

In the other PC after the procedure I dont have anymore a Users directory under the Sys disk.
In my Laptop the Sys users directory exist and it is still full ( 3,5G of files)

Supposedly something went wrong. I tought about reversing it ... but I can multiply the errors If I dont understand why it did it wrong ?

PS: Data disk is D: Sys2 W7 disk is O:

Kari · 08 Aug 2012

The sysprep has not for some reason worked if the user files are still on system disk. If sysprep has not worked it can't also be the reason for Thunderbird losing mails.

Kari

AlainCh · 08 Aug 2012

OK,
strange as it can be I did a test create a new file on the desktop: It appeared on the DATA Users but not on the Sys one.
Now Should I do the reverse or redo the same thing ??

Thanks for your patience !!
8 years out of IT .. I'm loosing my edge !

Kari · 08 Aug 2012

In your case I would revert the relocation.

AlainCh · 08 Aug 2012

OK thanks Kari.

I reverted.

Situation:
Only ONE users directory >> is now in the Sys disk
Lost some setting like desktop background, I really didnt check everythings.

Tunderbird still dont recognize anymore my account's setting location.

The only strange thing that happened both time I rebooted in OOB is :
"setup is checking your video performance" staying up for 35 minutes at least.

If you agree, I will now try to MOVE again all on the DATA disk.. and only when everything is as it should be, I'll try to set again my Tunderbird.

Alain Charles

Kari · 08 Aug 2012

Be careful.

I do not know Thunderbird so I have no idea how to get your mails back. You could try to find an "Import" function in Thunderbird and then search through your whole PC to find the mail file.

Kari