Changing an account name

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Guest

I purchased a used computer, did not reinstall the operating system (XP
home), and have been using it for about 8 months. One thing really bothers
me however. Under documents and setting the old owners name is listed. I
have changed it so that my name shows on the start menu and windows login,
but I have not been able to change it under documents and settings. I am
afraid if I create a new user now and delete the old one all of my s all of
my settings will be gone. How can I solve this problem?

Thanks,
 
Candie,

Yes, if you simply delete the old account and start a new one you may screw
things up e.g. you will loose your Outlook Express email account settings,
..NET MSN Messenger settings etc. and will have to re-enter them on the new
account. Otherwise, if you have all the setting info you need and don't mind
re-entering, you can create a new account with your name, copy your docs
from the old account to the new account's My Documents folders and then
delete the old account. Then enter any necessary settings into Outlook
Express etc.

Also, you might consider this:

[How to Change Name and Company Information After You Install Windows XP]
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=310441

(If that is what you are really getting at.)

'Have a nice one.
 
Candie said:
I purchased a used computer, did not reinstall the operating system
(XP
home), and have been using it for about 8 months. One thing really
bothers
me however. Under documents and setting the old owners name is
listed. I have changed it so that my name shows on the start menu and
windows login,
but I have not been able to change it under documents and settings. I
am afraid if I create a new user now and delete the old one all of my
s all of
my settings will be gone. How can I solve this problem?

Thanks,
Click to expand...

As you have discovered, just changing the name of the account doesn't
change any of the files/folders associated with the account. Instead,
create a new user account for yourself and then copy over all the
settings with this procedure:

Copy a User Account -
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=811151

Note: You must import your e-mail messages and addresses to the new user
profile before you delete the old profile. You must also log into the
new account once before you can copy anything to it.

After you have created your new account and are satisfied with it, you
can delete the old account if you wish.

Malke
 
Candie said:
I purchased a used computer, did not reinstall the operating system (XP
home), and have been using it for about 8 months. One thing really bothers
me however. Under documents and setting the old owners name is listed. I
have changed it so that my name shows on the start menu and windows login,
but I have not been able to change it under documents and settings. I am
afraid if I create a new user now and delete the old one all of my s all of
my settings will be gone. How can I solve this problem?

Thanks,
Click to expand...


With second-hand computers, especially if acquired from strangers
but perhaps even if acquired from a family member or friend, your wisest
course of action would definitely be to format the hard drives and start
fresh. You don't want to get in trouble because the original owner may
have filled the hard drive with kiddie porn, or have problems because
the original owner downloaded/installed viruses or other malware.

However, to fix the "Registered to" information for WinNT/2K/XP,
you can use Start > Run > Regedit.exe to edit:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\RegisteredOwner

and:

HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current
Version\RegisteredOrganization

How this will affect the name displayed in previously installed
applications will vary depending upon each individual program; some
read the registered owner information dynamically, while others read
it only during installation.

The user profile folders (C:\Documents and Settings\Username)
_cannot_ be renamed, even if the associated user account has been.
So, your best course of action would be to log on using the built-in
Administrator account, create a new user account, with the username
desired. You can then delete the old user account(s).

HOW TO Create and Configure User Accounts in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;279783

How to Copy User Data to a New User Profile
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;811151


--

Bruce Chambers

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