Identities Folder

[Anna_Stephanie]

Hello All,

I noticed there is a directory named "Identities" when I look in the
My Documents folder. I am using Windows XP Pro w/SP2. There are quite
a few directories contained within that folder with alphanumeric
strings enclosed in {}. What are these?

Thank you for your help in advance.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

I noticed there is a directory named "Identities" when I look in the
My Documents folder. I am using Windows XP Pro w/SP2. There are quite
a few directories contained within that folder with alphanumeric
strings enclosed in {}. What are these?

That depends on the exact path within that folder. One of these directories
contains your Outlook Express data as you can easily check with OE >
Tools > Options > Maintenance > Store Folder.

 

[Anna_Stephanie]

D-D:

It is in the root of the My Documents folder and I do not use Outlook
Express.

Thanks.

 

[mayayana]

I noticed there is a directory named "Identities" when I look in the
My Documents folder. I am using Windows XP Pro w/SP2. There are quite
a few directories contained within that folder with alphanumeric
strings enclosed in {}. What are these?

The names are what Microsoft calls a GUID - Globally
Unique IDentifier. The GUIDs are assigned to each user
on the system and then used to identify those people,
with the GUID <-> user name translation stored in the
Registry.
The subfolders contain personal info. for the individual.
I've only ever seen the Identities folders used for Outlook
Express settings and email, but there may be other uses.

Maybe the best explanation is that Microsofties detest
simplicity and avoid human-readable text wherever an
esoteric secret code can be used instead. If you imagine
that the folders are actually named "Susan", "Louie", etc.
then their presence and structure makes more sense.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

D-D:

It is in the root of the My Documents folder and I do not use Outlook
Express.

There is no such folder by default and therefore, it has been created by
installed software. Use the particular GUID {...} as keyword for a Google
search or when searching the registry in order to obtain more information.
Good luck.

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

The names are what Microsoft calls a GUID - Globally
Unique IDentifier. The GUIDs are assigned to each user
on the system and then used to identify those people,
with the GUID <-> user name translation stored in the
Registry.
The subfolders contain personal info. for the individual.
I've only ever seen the Identities folders used for Outlook
Express settings and email, but there may be other uses.

Maybe the best explanation is that Microsofties detest
simplicity and avoid human-readable text wherever an
esoteric secret code can be used instead.

Right. It's all part of the super-top-secret plot to take over the
government. Make sure your tinfoil hats are "shiny side out," everyone!

 

[mayayana]

Maybe the best explanation is that Microsofties detest

Right. It's all part of the super-top-secret plot to take over the
government. Make sure your tinfoil hats are "shiny side out," everyone!

Oh, I don't know about that. I'd say it's more
a pre-adolescent fetish, like 12-year-old
boys who love to have secret decoder rings
that only they can decipher. ... A tendency to
equate abstruse bloat with sophistication and
technical polish.
I guess maybe those 12-year-olds might like
one of your foil hats, though. They could write
special symbols on it that can only be found in
an obscure corner of the Registry.

I can't think of any reasonable design decision
that would have specified that every user needs
a 32-place hexadecimal number, unique in all the
world, just to identify their app. data. That would
imply that two users named "Louie" can be on the
same machine. Why would anyone ever do such a thing?
How would the two Louies know which Louie to
log on as?

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

Oh, I don't know about that. I'd say it's more
a pre-adolescent fetish, like 12-year-old
boys who love to have secret decoder rings
that only they can decipher. ... A tendency to
equate abstruse bloat with sophistication and
technical polish.
I guess maybe those 12-year-olds might like
one of your foil hats, though. They could write
special symbols on it that can only be found in
an obscure corner of the Registry.

I can't think of any reasonable design decision
that would have specified that every user needs
a 32-place hexadecimal number, unique in all the
world, just to identify their app. data. That would
imply that two users named "Louie" can be on the
same machine. Why would anyone ever do such a thing?
How would the two Louies know which Louie to
log on as?

I'm not inordinately fond of the registry, but in any complex multiuser
system (whether standalone or domain) I sure can see the point of SIDs.