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Modifying the All Users profile in Vista or Windows Server 2008

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Ok, so I just spend a few whistful hours trying to work out how to modify the "All Users" profile on a Windows Server 2008 system.   I wanted to add a program to run at login (e.g. in the Start  Menu|Programs|Startup directory) for all users that login, but things are now a bit different with Vista and Windows Server 2008.

I have found quite a few people asking similar questions on the Internet but no one seems to have offered a solution that works so I thought I'd post my findings.

Firstly, for those who haven't hit this before, the "C:\Documents and Settings" directory where user profiles are stored in Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 systems has changed to "C:\Users" in Vista and Windows Server 2008.  (I regularly encounter XP users who have upgraded to Vista getting confused by this one)

So now in Vista and Windows Server 2008 the "All Users" directory in the C:\Users directory is a hidden directory so you will need to "Show hidden files and folders" in Windows Explorer by going Tools|Folder Options|View to show it.

Once you have visability to the C:\Users\All Users directory you will notice that it is just a shortcut then if you try and access it you will get an "Access Denied" dialog box.  Real Handy.

Looking at the properties of the "All Users" directory shows that it points to the C:\ProgramData directory (this is a new system directory that did not exist in older versions e.g. XP etc).  The C:\ProgramData directory is also a hidden directory but if you have already done "Show hidden files & folders" as above then you will see it.

 The C:\ProgramData directory has a sub-directory called "Start Menu" but you will get Access Denied on this one too.

 This is now getting a bit long so lets go straight to the answer ... the Startup directory I needed is now at "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup"

So essentially, under Vista and Windows Server 2008 the "All Users" profile is now manifested as the C:\ProgramData directory and there are shortcuts from the C:\Users\All Users directory to the new location for compatibility reasons but in most cases you will get an Access Denied dialog box when you attempt to access the shortcuts but you will find most of what you are looking for under C:\ProgramData\Microsoft.  You can also access this via C:\Users\All Users\Microsoft

I can't offer you any explanation as to why the All Users profile underwent such a change in Vista (and Windows Server 2008) but for now I have solved my challenge and have got my startup program working for all users.

I hope this helps those similarly confused ...

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Thanks for the comment Shan. I have never used that method before but it is definately easier and it works ... thanks heaps.

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    The simplest way to do this is compatible way back to early Windows NT days and does not give the user any confusing experience.  Simply right-click on your Startup programs group in the start menu and select Explore All Users from the context menu.  This opens explorer to the appropriate directory.  This is also very easy to explain to users and is less likely to break as a practice in future versions of Windows.

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    PingBack from http://www.internetdirectory.co.cc/modifying-the-all-users-profile-in-vista-or-windows-server-2008

  • Anonymous
    October 08, 2010
    That is a great trick for getting to the all users when you are the system directly. But if you are trying to get to the all users group from the admin share - you are out of luck using that method Thanks for the explanation to where this has been moved to in 2008

  • Anonymous
    January 11, 2011
    Great tip, that just saved me some time.  Thanks. Shan, that method looks like it takes you to the current user's startup directory and could vary based on user profile.  When I did that, it took me to the user's roaming profile path.  

  • Anonymous
    February 10, 2011
    MikeB, what Shan posted works, but it seems like it may be different depending on how your computer/server is configured. (eg. A group policy may change what actually opens when you use that shortcut)

  • Anonymous
    February 22, 2011
    guys im trying to add a program in the startup to a single profile ....i have managed to get it done for all users, but this is not what i need..... can anybody help out here :)

  • Anonymous
    May 04, 2011
    Awesome tip, just save me a lot of time and frustration!!

  • Anonymous
    October 12, 2011
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    October 14, 2011
    the everyone group has deny set under securtiy settings. simply uncheck this or delete the everyone group and re add it with full control

  • Anonymous
    June 07, 2012
    How stupid that they movedit way down there!! Thank you for clearing that up.

  • Anonymous
    April 08, 2013
    EASIER WAY TO DO IT: Simply right-click on your Startup programs group in the start menu and select "Explore All Users" from the context menu.  Then paste a shortcut of the .exe program you want to start up for all users.

  • Anonymous
    February 28, 2014
    Thank you for the helpful article!

  • Anonymous
    October 15, 2014
    what if you want something to be done at startup for a specific user only? I have an autologin script set up for one specific AD account. When the server is restarted, it does an automatic logon for a user that sets up a scheduler...I don't want anyone that logs on the bring up a scheduler....

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    September 05, 2015
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    September 05, 2015
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    September 05, 2015
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