the wharf rat said:
Well, let's see...
- So I could do an OS restore/upgrade without losing user data?
- So I can let users fill up their disc space without causing
the OS to malfunction?
- So I can put the user file system on network storage?
- So I can back stuff up easier?
- Because I want to even though MS doesn't think I do?
I doubt a simpleton that puts everything he has on a single partition JBOD
array is going to understand the benefits of any of that.
Because Windows puts the user hive of the registry, %appdata% and other OS
installation specific hidden folders there, it's not possible to make your
system very modular, like in the way that /usr in Linux is totally
scaleable. I have however been able to get it done pretty well using
symbolic links on my own computers, putting them onto RAID 1, with the OS
partitions and Desktop on RAID 0.
You need Roaming User Profiles and Active Directory to do anything like that
in Windows, which is not something that any home user is going to use. It's
not even something that I have done in the small architectural firms who I
work with as a CAD consultant. They do not need that extra complexity and
expense of administration, so all data is just stored centrally on the
server. The workstations get messy over time with multiple user profiles,
with the users wanting their own settings on any computer they may be using.
ss.