Making Folders private

[Kate]

When I go to the area to make a folder private I can't
check the box for that option.How can I change this?

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Only hard drives formatted NTFS have the private folder option.

Converting FAT32 to NTFS in Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/ntfscvt.htm

[Courtesy of Alex Nichol, MS-MVP]

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

 

[Colin Nash [MVP]]

There are two main reasons that could cause this:

a.. The folder is not in your user profile (Drive_letter:\Documents and
Settings\User_name, where Drive_letter is the drive on which Windows XP is
installed and User_name is your user name). The Make this folder private
option is available only for files in your user profile (the My Documents
folder and its subfolders, and the Cookies, Desktop, Start Menu, or
Favorites folders).
a.. The Windows folder is located on a drive that is formatted with the FAT
or FAT32 file systems. The Make this folder private option requires the NTFS
file system.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;[LN];307286


If the drive is formatted with NTFS and you want to configure more specific
security settings (or put security on folders outside of C:\DOCUMENTS AND
SETTINGS) then you can either boot to Safe mode which will allow the
Security tab to show up, or disable 'Simple File Sharing'. See here:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;[LN];304040 You can only
disable 'Simple File Sharing' if you have XP Professional. XP Home cannot
do it.

How to boot to Safe Mode:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=315222

 

[Doug Knox MS-MVP]

First, as others have said, the drive must be formatted NTFS, not FAT32.

Second, if you're using XP Home or Pro, by default, only folders in My Documents can be made Private. For XP Pro, you can work around this by opening Windows Explorer, going to Tools, Folder Options, View. Scroll down and uncheck Use Simple File Sharing. Now, when you right click a drive/folder/file and select Properties, you'll see a Security tab.

In XP Home, Simple file sharing cannot be disabled, but you can get the Security tab when you boot into Safe Mode and log in on the built in Administrator account. See Help and Support for more information on Safe Mode.