Win2K update problem with User profile, now User.ComputerName - Help!

  • Thread starter Thread starter G Lykos
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G Lykos

My father recently accepted an automatic MS update on his computer, running
Windows 2000 with all updates up to that point. His desktop and documents
disappeared, with the login now looking like a new user.

Turns out that C:\Documents and Settings still has his original profile
directories under User, including his document files (phew!), but now also
has an empty profile consisting of User.ComputerName, which is where he
somehow gets placed when logging in using his user name (as judged by where
Windows Explorer opens up to, in Start Menu).

We created a new user, and Win2K creates another profile file set under
NewUser.ComputerName, and then appears to disregard the new user account and
starts him off in the original User.ComputerName profile (again as judged by
where Windows Explorer opens up to, in Start Menu).

I read a post elsewhere where someone mentioned having seen this same
problem after installing:
- Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool - July 2007 (KB890830)
- Security Update for Windows 2000 (KB926122)

We found and removed, using Add/Remove Programs, the second update. The
first was not available in the list to be removed. No change in behavior.

Any ideas on how to fix this will be much appreciated!

Thanks,
George
 
G Lykos said:
My father recently accepted an automatic MS update on his computer,
running
Windows 2000 with all updates up to that point. His desktop and documents
disappeared, with the login now looking like a new user.

Turns out that C:\Documents and Settings still has his original profile
directories under User, including his document files (phew!), but now also
has an empty profile consisting of User.ComputerName, which is where he
somehow gets placed when logging in using his user name (as judged by
where
Windows Explorer opens up to, in Start Menu).

We created a new user, and Win2K creates another profile file set under
NewUser.ComputerName, and then appears to disregard the new user account
and
starts him off in the original User.ComputerName profile (again as judged
by
where Windows Explorer opens up to, in Start Menu).

I read a post elsewhere where someone mentioned having seen this same
problem after installing:
- Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool - July 2007 (KB890830)
- Security Update for Windows 2000 (KB926122)

We found and removed, using Add/Remove Programs, the second update. The
first was not available in the list to be removed. No change in behavior.

Any ideas on how to fix this will be much appreciated!

Thanks,
George
Click to expand...

I read your post a few times but I'm still confused what you're
actually trying to achieve. Please rephrase your question.
 
A Microsoft Windows update appears to have screwed up my father's Win2K
computer. His account is User. There is now both a User profile and an
empty User.ComputerName profile under Documents and Settings (in addition to
Administrator and All Users). When he logs in as User, he is tied to the
empty User.ComputerName profile rather than his User profile with his
desktop, his documents, and all the rest. We want the User.ComputerName
profile to go away, and for his User logon to again tie to his User profile.
 
There are a couple of ways of doing this. Here is one of them:
1. Reboot the machine.
2. Log on as Administrator.
3. Control Panel / System / Advanced / User Profiles / Settings
4. Click your father's old user profile.
5. Click Copy To.
6. Specify this path:
c:\documents and settings\User.computerName
7. Click Yes when prompted to overwrite the existing profile.

Your father should now be able to log on under his normal
account and see his old settings, even though he now uses
the new profile folder.
 
Thanks for your reply. I won't have an opportunity until this evening to
review the System User Profile Settings with him.

To be sure that we understand each other:
1. The desired data are in the original profile, User, under Documents and
Settings.
2. The new corresponding (and empty) profile that Win2K Pro created is
User.ComputerName.
3. Your guidance is to overwrite the User.ComputerName profile with the
contents of the User profile.

Per the Win2K Pro Resource Guide, p. 288, it appears that the profile name
of User.ComputerName (shown there as User.LOCALBOX) is normally caused by a
user logging on with the same NetBIOS name as an existing user.

What snapped and caused his logon a month or so ago, after years of usage,
to suddenly determine a mismatch on User NetBIOS name (if in fact what is
going on) and switch from his User to a User.LOCALBOX profile name??

This is a stand-alone installation.

Thanks,
George
 
See below.

G Lykos said:
Thanks for your reply. I won't have an opportunity until this evening to
review the System User Profile Settings with him.

To be sure that we understand each other:
1. The desired data are in the original profile, User, under Documents and
Settings.
Click to expand...

*** Yes.
2. The new corresponding (and empty) profile that Win2K Pro created is
User.ComputerName.
Click to expand...


*** Yes.
3. Your guidance is to overwrite the User.ComputerName profile with the
contents of the User profile.
Click to expand...

*** Yes.
Per the Win2K Pro Resource Guide, p. 288, it appears that the profile name
of User.ComputerName (shown there as User.LOCALBOX) is normally caused by
a
user logging on with the same NetBIOS name as an existing user.

What snapped and caused his logon a month or so ago, after years of usage,
to suddenly determine a mismatch on User NetBIOS name (if in fact what is
going on) and switch from his User to a User.LOCALBOX profile name??
Click to expand...

*** Sorry, I don't know.
 
P.S. You mentioned other options. Our first choice would be to get back to
the original user and profile structure, without .LOCALBOX. We're
comfortable making account, file, and registry manipulations required to
accomplish this.

Thanks again.
 
Thanks for your reply - sorry for the crossing posts. To repeat mine:

You mentioned other options. Our first choice would be to get back to the
original user and profile structure, without .LOCALBOX. We're comfortable
making account, file, and registry manipulations required to accomplish
this. Note that in any event we will need to delete the abandoned profile
files due to its size and disk space issues.

Thanks again,
George
 
The pointers for user profiles are kept here:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList

Changing the pointers will have the same result as copying/
deleting the orphanded profile folder. However, depending
on your level of experience in editing the registry, there is
a greater risk of things going wrong.
 
Happy outcome. Editing the pointer path to trim off .LOCALBOX was a
straight-forward thing to talk my father through remotely, and his user
account then engaged it without surprises. We then merged the files he had
created in the new and unwanted profile to the original and now
current-again one. Thanks very much for your support, including sharing the
additional information below.

George
 
My father is pushing 81, and we've worked similar things remotely for a long
time. Editing the path was much less involved and less error-prone than a
series of file manipulations. Thanks again.
 
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