Windows 7 / Networking

Roaming Profiles

Local user profiles work great if a user logs on to the same system all the time. However, in some organizations users may frequently log on to different systems. Mapped network drives, shortcuts on the desktop, and other elements of the user's profile are often useful if they're available to a user no matter where the user logs on. Roaming profiles can be implemented to ensure the same profile is available to a user no matter which computer is used.

Figure below shows how roaming profiles are used. A folder is shared on a server that is available to the user on the network, and the user's account is then configured to use this share for the profile.

When the user logs on to a computer, the profile is retrieved from the network share and copied onto the local computer. If the user makes any changes, these changes are copied up to the roaming profile on the network share. If a user then moves to a different computer and logs on, the profile is copied down to the different computer.

Using roaming profiles in a domain

Roaming profiles can be implemented only in a domain. The two steps used to create a roaming profile are as follows:

  1. Create a share on a server. This share needs to be accessible to users using the UNC path (\\ServerName\ShareName). If more than one user will use this share, the Authenticated Users group should be granted Full Control. It's not necessary to create the folder for each user because this can be created automatically.
  2. Modify the domain user account. The Profile tab of the user account Properties page includes a Profile Path text box. The UNC path to the share is added here and appended with the %UserName% variable, giving a full path of \\ServerName\ShareName\%UserName%. When the user logs on, a folder will be created within the share with the appropriate permissions for the user to access the folder.
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In this tutorial:

  1. Managing Windows 7 in a Domain
  2. The Domain
  3. What is Wrong with Workgroups
  4. The Domain Concept
  5. Active Directory
  6. Domain Security
  7. Joining a Domain
  8. Windows 7 Offline Domain Join
  9. Browsing the Domain
  10. Searching the Domain
  11. Custom Searches
  12. Assigning Permissions to Domain Members
  13. The Double-Thick Security Trick
  14. Creating a Test Bed
  15. Creating a Domain
  16. Installing Windows Server 2008 on vPC
  17. Configuring a Windows Server 2008 Server
  18. Promoting a Server to a Domain Controller
  19. Joining Windows 7 to a Domain
  20. Authentication vs Authorization
  21. Authentication
  22. Authorization
  23. Built-in Groups
  24. Organizing Users with Groups
  25. Group Scope and Group Type
  26. Creating Users and Groups in a Domain
  27. Using HomeGroup with a Domain-Based Computer
  28. Identifying and Resolving Logon Issues
  29. Hardware vs. Network
  30. Using Cached Credentials
  31. Password Expiration
  32. Determining Logon Context
  33. Logon Hours Compliance
  34. Restricting Computer Access
  35. Time Synchronization
  36. Understanding User Profiles
  37. Standard Profiles
  38. Roaming Profiles
  39. Implementing Roaming Profiles
  40. Mandatory Profiles
  41. Super-Mandatory User Profiles
  42. Modifying the Default User Profile
  43. Configuring Settings with Scripts
  44. Anti-Malware Software
  45. Microsoft Windows 7 Defender
  46. Third-Party Anti-malware Software