Is it possible to change the name of an user system folder?

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Guest

I inherited a new computer when an employee changed jobs. The PC was
basically brand new. I changed his user account to my name successfully and
have been using the system, however, the directory under MyDocuments is still
his name. When I attempt to rename this directory I receive the following
message. "xxxx is a Windows system folder and is required for Windows to
run properly. It cannot be moved or renamed." Is there any workaround?
 
I inherited a new computer when an employee changed jobs. The PC was
basically brand new. I changed his user account to my name successfully and
have been using the system, however, the directory under MyDocuments is still
his name. When I attempt to rename this directory I receive the following
message. "xxxx is a Windows system folder and is required for Windows to
run properly. It cannot be moved or renamed." Is there any workaround?
Click to expand...

First, I would strongly recommend not not change it. I you renamed the
user account, Windows is working as designed (WAD) when it continues to
use the previous user's %USERPROFILE% directory.

If you want a %USERPROFILE% directory with your own name, create a new
account under your name (you have to undo the renaming first) and use
that. You can still copy files from the former employee's profile into
yours. To copy program settings, you could use a Profile Migration tool,
or copy the former employee's %USERPROFILE% to "Default User" before you
log in under your new name, but there lie problems, too.

If you really want to rename the former employee's %USERPROFILE% to your
name, you can try this:
Log in as the local PC's Administrator;
in the registry, change a key which looks like
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList\
S-1-5-xx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxx-1xxx
where the name ProfileImagePath points to the old name: change that to
use your own name. Then rename the directory accordingly.

Proceed at your own risk.

PS: You write "the directory under MyDocuments is still his name". I
don't quite follow. The directory "My Documents" should be below his
name, not the other way round.
 
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