Default Roaming Profile is not WindowsXP Themed

[Jim Watts]

Hi,

I've run into a little problem and want to establish if anybody else sees it
or, as I suspect, I'm just going mad.

When a new user logs onto a WindowsXP system for the very first time, their
environment is a copy of the .default registry which means that they get the
full XP theme, greenhill and coloured start bar etc.

However, if this new user's account has a roaming profile specified in their
Active Directory account object they don't get the XP theme, even though
there are no files or settings in their roaming profile because they've
never logged on ANYWHERE (their profile directory doesn't even exist yet!).
These new users get what appears to be the Windows 'classic' interface, but
the Display Properties dialog box terms it a 'modified' one so there must be
some differences between it and a standard 'classic'

Has anybody else seem this, and do they have a work around?

Jim
--
Jim Watts,
Technology Consultant
Directories, Authentication and Border Security
Information Systems Services
University of Southampton

 

[Steven Liu [MSFT]]

Hi Jim,

In fact, the roaming profile is just same as the local profile. The
different is that the roaming profile sames the profile in the server. The
local profile save the profile in the c:\documents and settings\<username>
folder.

When the count is set to use roaming profile, you should not find the
profile folder from local hard disk.

In your problem, I think the problem may be caused by that the account does
not have enough permission for its profile folder. It can't create the
profile on the server's share folder. Please check this. Grantee the full
control to the user for related folder.

If the client has ever logon on a computer locally adn its profile is set
to local profile and you changes its profile to roaming profile now, you
need to manually copied its profile to the roaming profile path.

To copy an existing user profile to another user's account, follow these
steps:


1. Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties on
the shortcut menu that appears.

2. Click the Advanced tab, and then click Settings under User Profiles.

3. In the "Profiles stored on this computer" list, click the profile
that you want to copy.

4. Click Copy To.

5. In the Copy To dialog box, do one of the following:

- In the "Copy profile to" box, type the Universal Naming Convention (UNC)
path to the target user's profile folder. For example type the following:

"\\<ServerName>\<ShareName>\<UsersProfileDirectory>" (without the
quotation marks)
-or-



- Click Browse, and then navigate to the user profile folder that you want
to copy the profile to. Click OK.

6. Under "Permitted to use", click Change. Type the name of the user
that will be permitted to use this profile, and then click OK. NOTE:
Verify that you are not choosing users or groups from a Microsoft
Windows NT-based domain, because Windows XP is designed to use Active
Directory to select domains.

7. In the Copy To dialog box, click OK. If you receive a "Confirm Copy"
message, click Yes.

8. Click OK twice.


Thanks for using Microsoft News Group!

Sincerely,

Steven Liu

Microsoft Online Partner Support

MCSE 2000

Get Secure! - www.microsoft.com/security

This posting is provided "as is" with no warranties and confers no rights.

 

[Jim Watts]

Steven, Thanks for your response.

I know that the local and roaming profiles should be the same, but they are
not. If the user is NOT configured to have a roaming profile, then they
receive an XP/luna style local profile. If they ARE configured to receive a
roaming profie, then they get a Windows 'classic' interface.

I don't think that it is a permissions problem. The profile share
\\servername\profiles has 'Authenticated users'=Full control, and Windows
itself sets the permissions on the users profile directory when it creates
it. These are set to '%username%'=Full Control, 'System'=Full Control

Other educational institutions i've talked with have seen this issue as
well. Somebody suggested that the workstations *know* what domain level we
are running, and give you an XP profile if its 2003 and a 'classic' profile
if its 2000. I don't beleive this, but we are running a 2000 domain.

Can you suggest any other areas i should look at?
--
Jim Watts,
Technology Consultant
Directories, Authentication and Border Security
Information Systems Services
University of Southampton

Hi Jim,

In fact, the roaming profile is just same as the local profile. The
different is that the roaming profile sames the profile in the server. The
local profile save the profile in the c:\documents and settings\<username>
folder.

When the count is set to use roaming profile, you should not find the
profile folder from local hard disk.

In your problem, I think the problem may be caused by that the account does
not have enough permission for its profile folder. It can't create the
profile on the server's share folder. Please check this. Grantee the full
control to the user for related folder.

If the client has ever logon on a computer locally adn its profile is set
to local profile and you changes its profile to roaming profile now, you
need to manually copied its profile to the roaming profile path.

To copy an existing user profile to another user's account, follow these
steps:


1. Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties on
the shortcut menu that appears.

2. Click the Advanced tab, and then click Settings under User Profiles.

3. In the "Profiles stored on this computer" list, click the profile
that you want to copy.

4. Click Copy To.

5. In the Copy To dialog box, do one of the following:

- In the "Copy profile to" box, type the Universal Naming Convention (UNC)
path to the target user's profile folder. For example type the following:

"\\<ServerName>\<ShareName>\<UsersProfileDirectory>" (without the
quotation marks)
-or-



- Click Browse, and then navigate to the user profile folder that you want
to copy the profile to. Click OK.

6. Under "Permitted to use", click Change. Type the name of the user
that will be permitted to use this profile, and then click OK. NOTE:
Verify that you are not choosing users or groups from a Microsoft
Windows NT-based domain, because Windows XP is designed to use Active
Directory to select domains.

7. In the Copy To dialog box, click OK. If you receive a "Confirm Copy"
message, click Yes.

8. Click OK twice.


Thanks for using Microsoft News Group!

Sincerely,

Steven Liu

Microsoft Online Partner Support

MCSE 2000

Get Secure! - www.microsoft.com/security

This posting is provided "as is" with no warranties and confers no rights.

 

[Steven Liu [MSFT]]

Hi Jim,

This is by design. The new visual settings are not compatible downlevel,
therefore we don't install them by default. This prevents problems when the
user roams back
downlevel. Users can manually turn them on if they want.

Let's create the policy.

user configuration -> Administrative templates -> Control panel -> Display
-> Desktop Themes

"Load a specific visual style file or force windows classic"

Enable it and configure it. This should solve the problem.

Note: you may need to upgrade the Windows 2000 group policy for the Windows
XP.

307900 Upgrading Windows 2000 Group Policy for Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=307900

Thanks for using Microsoft News Group!

Sincerely,

Steven Liu

Microsoft Online Partner Support

MCSE 2000

Get Secure! - www.microsoft.com/security

This posting is provided "as is" with no warranties and confers no rights.

 

[Jim Watts]

Steven,

Ok, thanks. I understand now why its doing it, although i think its a shame
that the only official fix is to force the Luna scheme onto users, rather
than setting it as a default and then allowing them to change it.

Still, now i know why it does it, i can probably sort it out with a registry
hack for new users.

Many thanks for your help,
Jim

--
Jim Watts,
Technology Consultant
Directories, Authentication and Border Security
Information Systems Services
University of Southampton

 

[Steven Liu]

Hi Jim,

You are welcome!

Thanks for using Microsoft News Group!

Sincerely,

Steven Liu

Microsoft Online Partner Support

MCSE 2000

Get Secure! - www.microsoft.com/security

This posting is provided "as is" with no warranties and confers no rights.