[K12OSN] Redirect "My Documents" folder to home folder

Wed Aug 9 22:31:34 UTC 2006

Map the H: drive to the home folder, then on the XP machine map My Documents
to the H: drive.  If you use Outlook, place the .pst file in the H drive.
Fairly easy with 2k/2k3 server to set up group policies to do this for all
users on a network, but I have never used group policies with SAMBA, so I
can't help you their.

With W95, W98, W2k, and XP you can also do this via a batch script, just
have to make sure its run at log-in.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Steven Santos
Director, Simply Circus, Inc.
Email: Steven at SimplyCircus.com
 Mail: PO BOX 620753
       Newton, MA 02462
Phone: 781-799-4938
 eFax: 309-214-0899
  Web: www.SimplyCircus.com

> -----Original Message-----
> From: k12osn-bounces at redhat.com [mailto:k12osn-bounces at redhat.com]On
> Behalf Of Burke Almquist
> Sent: Wednesday, August 09, 2006 4:55 PM
> To: Support list for open source software in schools.
> Subject: Re: [K12OSN] Redirect "My Documents" folder to home folder
>
>
> Don't they loose things like an address book and POP3 email this way
> though. If it's just documents and files you want to save then a
> network drive is easier, but if you want to save application
> preferences, settings and other arcane things, then it's probably
> best to use a roaming profile.
>
> On Aug 9, 2006, at 3:25 PM, Doug Simpson wrote:
>
> > Indeed is *may be* easier to show them how to save to their "My
> > Documents"
> > folder, but I prefer to be able to just connect a computer and it just
> > work.  You will have to have the registry key to se their "My
> > Documents"
> > to somewhere else, and then that will only be applied if that user has
> > appropriate rights.
> >
> > Another reason to teach them to use their H: drive is simjply
> > this. . .
> >
> > When a user logs in on a computer with XP on it, they get a
> > profile.  On
> > that computer. . . If they already have one on the server
> > somewhere, that
> > it the one they get.  So, if their "My Documents" folder is bloated
> > (most
> > are) then that entire foder (regardless of it's actual location)
> > will get
> > copied to that local computer they just logged in on.  Now, that
> > user had
> > a complete copy of their "My Documents" folder on that computer,
> > and if
> > they just logged in to do a single thing and they never log in again,
> > there sits their local copy of the profile, wasting space on that
> > computer.
> >
> > If they login on many computers, every single one will get a local
> > copy of
> > their "My Documents" folder (regardless of where it is actually
> > located)
> > because it lives in their profile.
> >
> > MUCH wasted drive space.  Also, if they happen to be a counselor or
> > whatever, their profile (including their "My Documents" folder
> > (which may
> > contain classified data and documentation)) get copied to that local
> > computer's hard drive. . . MAJOR security and confidentiality risk.
> >
> > Any user who sits down at the computer and can browse the local
> > drive can
> > see into those files.
> >
> > For our student computers, we use DriveShield (similar to
> > DeepFreeze) and
> > the local drive is restored to our settings and etc. (all local
> > data is
> > deleted (including profiles)). The server also deletes their
> > profile when
> > they log off.  It only takes once or twice (three times for the really
> > slow ones) to figure out that if they save to their H: drive, it
> > doesn't
> > disappear and will be there the next time they need it.
> >
> > One major reason for this is that in the profile, there are copies
> > of your
> > "Temporary Internet Files". Yup! your CACHE! Imagine. . .hundreds of
> > students, thousands in some districts, each with a full-blown copy of
> > "Temporary Internet Files" on the server in their profiles! We had
> > hundreds of gigs in server space and it was running at 60% when their
> > profiles were living there.  Once I set up the auto-profile-removal
> > thing,
> > that usage went to below 10%.  Pprofiles don't live in each user's
> > home
> > directory, either. . . they live in their own share and the directory
> > structure is created on the fly when they login, and deleted on the
> > fly
> > when they log out.
> >
> > WHAT A WASTE of drive space!.  We don't have that problem anymore on
> > student computers.  They also learn that their cutesy screensavers,
> > wallpapers, and other stuff disappears as well and they eventually
> > learn
> > that and will quit messing with them.
> >
> > BEEE--YOUOUOUUUUU--TEE-FUUULLL!
> >
> >
> > Doug Simpson
> > Technology Specialist
> > DeQueen Public Schools
> > DeQueen, AR 71832
> > simpsond at leopards.k12.ar.us
> > Tux for President!
> >
> > On Wed, 9 Aug 2006, Paul Lemke wrote:
> >
> >> Hi all,
> >> Is there a way in windows 2000 to script the changing of the "My
> >> Documents"
> >> from "c:\docs and settings\blah\blah\mydocuments" to their mapped
> >> home
> >> directory? Specifically their startup.bat file that get's executed
> >> when they
> >> log in.
> >>
> >> I've googled it and can't see to come up with an easy answer. The
> >> reason
> >> behind this is I have roaming profiles turned on, but I don't want
> >> the users
> >> to wait all the time to copy their entire home directory. Sure I
> >> could tell
> >> them to save everything to their "X drive" but it's easier to show
> >> them how
> >> to save it to their "my documents" folder.
> >>
> >> Thanks for the help!
> >> Paul
> >>
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> >>
> >
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