Permanently changing the location of Task Scheduler tasks

Question

You can skip ahead to the $$$Question$$$ below if you don't want to read all of the backstory.

I have a gamer computer running Windows 10 Pro with:

• 512GB SSD partitioned with C: for Windows and P: for non-Microsoft apps
• 640GB HDD partitioned with partition-copies of C: and P:
• 2TB HDD for data
• 2TB external HDD for backups

While trying to prepare my hardware for Windows 11 and Visual Studio Community 2022, my motherboard failed and had to be sent in for repair. I moved the 640GB HDD and the 2TB internal HDD into an old case with an old motherboard (I did not move the SSD because the MB does not have any SSD connectors). While the 640GB HDD does boot and run properly, I have determined that the old computer MB and the 640GB are too old to run Windows 11, so, it will be kept as a fallback.

As I cleanup things on the 640GB HDD and run things like Thunderbird and browsers, I am finding certain apps have stored settings and other "data" on C:, which of course now is different from the C: on the SSD. One of those things is the tasks in Task Scheduler, which I would like to move to the 2TB data HDD so that the same tasks are available regardless of which case I move the 2TB HDD to.

$$$Question$$$

I want to permanently change the disk location of where Windows stores Task Scheduler tasks and any other "data" that Task Scheduler uses. I don't know how/where to permanently change Task Scheduler so that it finds its data in a different disk location. I have not found this info via Google.

Does anybody know how to change this?

Answer 1

Hi @Steve Randolph

You can set the starting directory via CMD:

SCHTASKS /Create /u username /p pswd /ru "NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM" /rp /sc ONSTART /tn task-name /tr "\"D:\name-of-file-to-run\" "

Hope this helps with your query,

--If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept as answer--

Answer 2

I know that the files are located in "%SystemRoot%\System32\Tasks". The issue is where is that designation stored and can it be changed?

Answer 3

Hi @Steve Randolph ,

if you search the registry for %SystemRoot%\System32\Tasks there is no result found.
It seems the path is hardcoded and can't be changed/modified.

As it looks like you can't move the folder permanently you can at least create a copy of the folder structure on a different drive for backup.

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(If the reply was helpful please don't forget to upvote and/or accept as answer, thank you)

Regards
Andreas Baumgarten

Answer 4

Yes, I am already making a backup of the folder structure. I also searched the registry and the search never stopped. I figured that my old computer is running so slow that it never finished.

Answer 5

and any other "data" that Task Scheduler uses.

That would be in the registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Schedule\
And you're not going to be able to "move" that.