Windows XP offers you the possibility to create and use more then one user account. With different user accounts, you are able to personalize settings and data. Every user has his or here own documents, favorites, e-mail, address book, Live Messenger, ... The only disadvantage is setting up each user account, with all the settings and registry tweaks. Here you read how to optimize this!
Creating user accounts is easy: Control Panel, User Accounts, Create a new Account. Next you are asked to create an Administrator account or an user account with limited rights. If there is no need for the new user to be an Administrator, it seems wise to create a user account with limited rights. This can cause many troubles setting up the account, because of the limited rights, I advise to create an Administrator account. If needed you can always change this setting later by going back to the user account settings in the Control Panel.
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Take into account that it's wise to create an account name without using spaces or other non alphabetical signs, this can cause troubles later. The provided name will be used to create a folder in the Documents and Settings folder, that's why things can go wrong. You can always change the name of the user account later (first use the new account). Change the name of a user account by Control Panel, User Accounts, select an account, Change my name.
I prefer to create an image of your Windows system. With a system image you are able to recover your system, in case you (or one of the other users) did something terribly wrong. If there is no need to. That's one of the reasons I prefer to use Administrator accounts only. If you have something to hide you need user accounts with limited rights! If you really want to be safe, create a limited account for yourself as well for frequent usage. If you provided one and only Administrator account with a password, which you forgot, check the page about creating a bootable CD-ROM, to crack the password. On the page Offline NT Password and Registry Editor you will also find a useful tool to do this!
I advise not to use fast user switching (or as less as possible). This option has a great advantage to quickly check your e-mail, print a file or whatever, while the other user is logged on. To disable this fast user switching: Control Panel, User accounts, Change the way users logging on or off, disable Use Fast User Switching. By disabling Use the Welcome screen, users must long on with both their username and password.
Different users, different user accounts, different passwords, which are saved..... Sometimes this can be very difficult, especially with the Live Messenger (.NET Passport). By Start, Run, enter control userpasswords2, tab Advanced, button Manage Passwords.
It is possible to enter an user account automatically at Windows startup, even though you have multiple user account. Download and start the powertool TWEAKUI, tab LOGON, tab AutoLogon (only available as administrator). Enter the name and password of the account which has to logon automatically (sometimes a password is needed for proper functioning).
If you are not able to delete a created user account anymore, try the following: Start, Run, command CMD, in the command console NET USER. With this command you will see all created user accounts. With the command NET USER name /ADD you are able to create a user account, with the command NET USER name /DELETE you are able to delete a user account. Especially deleting an account can be useful! The command NET offers more possibilities (see the commands NET and NET HELP). In Windows XP Home, the command CACLS offers you the possibility of rights management for every user account.
In Windows XP Pro you can change rights, using the folder properties, tab Security. To be able to change the folder rights, you have to disable the option Use simple fiel sharing in the Windows Explorer, Tools, Folder Options, tab View. This option is also available for Windows XP Home, but only in safe mode (press F8 at Windows reboot).
If you are having an account with limited rights (where some application don't work properly because of the limited rights), you probably need to give additional rights (also available in Windows XP HOME: the command CACLS or in save mode (press F8 at Windows reboot)). To find out which files and registry entries are causing the limited rights troubles, use the utilitie Process Monitor (www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/processmonitor.mspx). This utility monitors the accessed files and registry keys by Capture Events. The additional rights can be applied, if you are logged on with an administrator account.
The files and settings of the different user accounts are stored in the folder C:\Documents and Settings (or one of you other disks). In this folder, sub folders are created for the different user accounts, probably your name is already there. For every user, a new folder with documents and settings for that user is created. In the Windows Explorer you will see the following (hidden files and folders included):
NOTE: Normally you won't be able to see all files, they are hidden in the Windows Explorer! To unhide: Tools, Folder Options, tab View, enable Display the content of system folders, enable Show hidden files and folders, disable Hide extensions for known file types and disable Hide protected operating system files.
The account sub folder contains sub folders like Documents, Favorites, Desktop, Cookies, Menu Start and some other folders with settings. This information is only used for a specific user account.
You are able to maximize the use of diskspace for each useraccount. Click with the right mouse button on one of the available harddisks (C: or D:) and choose Properties, tab Quotum. After you have activated Quotum management, you are able to limit the use of diskspace for each useraccount.
Besides the folders with documents and settings, there is also a file called NTUSER.DAT with registry keys. These are the registry settings from the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER. You can change these settings with the registry editor.
The folder Local Settings contains the sub folders Temp and Temporary Internet Files. These are the folders where the temporary (internet) files are located. You can safely delete the content of these folders. In time, these folders contain a lot of files, which you don't need anymore. To delete all files, you will have to visit all the user accounts.
The folder All Users contains files and settings which apply to all user accounts. For example, by moving a shortcut (to a file, folder or application) from the Desktop or Menu Start folder of one of the user accounts to the Desktop or Menu Start folder of All Users, all the users will have the shortcut.
The folder Default User is used for creating a new user account. This folder will be copied to the new user account folder. By editing this folder, you can change the settings of new user accounts in the future. By changing these settings once, all the new user accounts will profit.
With the Files and Settings Transfer Wizard, you are able to copy many different settings of an existing account to a new created account. Actually this Wizard is used to copy files and settings to a new computer, by abusing it you can use it to copy account settings to another user. This saves a lot of clicking! Make sure the existing user account doesn't contain (that much) personal data like e-mail, MSN/Live settings or favorites. Start the Wizard by Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Files and Settings Transfer Wizard. Click Next, choose Old computer, choose Other and use the Browse button to find a suitable location for the settings backup.
Restoring the settings in a new user account is practically the same. In stead of Old computer you choose New computer, I don't need the Wizard Disk, choose Other and use the Browse button to find the backup location. You need to log off and on again. To finish you will have to change some desktop settings and none-Windows software settings.
If you plan to create and recover a system image (but also if you don't) you need to move all personal data to a second partition (for example D:). Else you will lose personal data when you try to recover your Windows partition! This need to be done for ALL user accounts! I prefer to use the D: partition (a logical NTFS drive in an extended partition) to store all personal data (another possibility is to create multiple partitions (logical disks in the extended partition): everybody has his or here own disk). On the D: partition you create multiple folders with the names of the different user accounts (you can create these folders with the Windows Explorer).
In the Windows Explorer you are able to change the default storage location of the My Documents folder for each user account. Logon the specific user account, start the Windows Explorer, right clicking the My Documents folder, choose Properties and move the My Documents folder to the folder D:\user account. All the files (including My Pictures, My Music, ...) will be moved at once!
The next folder to move, is the Favorites folder. Navigate to C:\Documents and Settings\user account\ and find the Favorites folder. Right click the Favorites folder, choose Cut, move to the D:\user account\, right click this folder and choose Paste.
The next step is moving the e-mail storage location. Create a subfolder D:\user account\MAIL for each user account. How to change the archive locations is described elsewhere on my website: Outlook Express (don't forget the Address Book!) and Outlook (don't forget to move or switch off the AutoArchive function!).
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