This thread dates from 2004 - but in 2009 I have the same problem (running XP
Pro, fully up to date).
My question is this: is it still necessary to go into the Registry and edit
it to restore the missing My Docs icons in the My Computer display? Or as
the KB article 319825 linked below refers to a hotfix, should I download the
hotfix, and will this solve the problem without my having to edit the
Registry manually? I'm nervous about messing with the registry.
And I am not sure if I have the exact literal values for the user name and
user profile of the account folder that is missing. The account name is
"Myname User", but the user name (shown in the desktop.ini file ) is "Myname
as user" and the user profile is, I think, also "Myname as user".
Any help - if anyone is still tracking this thread - would be appreciated!
br1anstorm
Ramesh said:
You're welcome. For more information see this article:
Shared Documents Folders Are Missing From My Computer:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=319825
Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows XP Shell/User]
Windows® XP Troubleshootinghttp://
www.winhelponline.com
That is the same problem I was having. Thank you, Thank you! Wonder how or
what happened?
See if the DocFolderPaths is correctly set:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\DocFolderPaths]
Add the following registry value, and then quit Registry Editor:
Value name: user name
Data type: REG_SZ
Value data: user profile\My Documents
Replace the user name and user profile environment variables with the
literal values for each user who logs on to the computer.
The My Documents folder (and all my files) are right where they should be
but the icon is no longer displayed when I open the My Computer folder
(launched from Start Menu, etc.) ... I used to see two folders listed
under the "Files Stored on This Computer" heading, My Documents and Shared
Documents; only the 'Shared' icon displays now!?! Everything looks OK on
the HDD, and I even logged-in as a different user but icon didn't display
then either.
Can anyone tell me what I need to do to reset this? Thanks.
Is your problem that if you login as yourself, open My Computer - you
do not see a Documents folder that belongs to you? Do you see the
Shared Documents folder?
Like on my computer login as Jose. If I open My Computer, I see
Shared Documents, Administrator's Documents and Jose's Documents.
This is good. Is the Documents folder that belongs to you missing
from the display?
Make sure it exists on the computer by looking on the C drive under
Documents and Settings. Every user should have a folder there
associated with their login.
If you look at that registry key, you should see an entry in the
DocFolderPaths for every login - including yours. If there is no
entry for you and the folder exists for you in Documents and Settings,
you will need to add it to the registry.
Don't be too afraid of the registry, just be careful. You can look
around all you want, but remember there is no "undo" or "quit without
saving" function in regedit.
When you open the registry, you can/should first choose File, Export.
At the bottom, be sure Export Range is All (the default). Export to
some file name you can find and remember, like Registry 050309.reg or
something. Leave the .reg extension so you will know what kind of
file it is later. It may take several minutes to export.
If you botch your registry edit, you can run regedit again and choose
File, Import to import the file you exported before the changes and
that will put everything back and then get more help or try again.
First, make sure the folder for your login actually exists on the C
drive in Documents and Settings. It really should be there. Then
open the registry and maneuver to the DocFolderPaths section as
indicated and see if there is an entry for your login. Look at the
entries that are already there and if you have to add a new value, it
should look just like the others except for the name part:
C:\Documents and Settings\<your user name goes here>\My Documents
It should match exactly what you see in C:\Document and Settings, for
you - it is just a path to a folder. My actual folder name in C:
\Documents and Settings is Jose.COMPUTER-WXYG879. Under that I have
my own My Documents folder just like every other user has their own My
Documents folder.
If your registry stuff is missing and you are still not comfortable
making the registry change, just say so and we can help out, or try to
find somebody that is.
Before somebody else says it, your computer may be infected with
malicious software. Please download Malwarebytes free software,
update it, and do a complete scan before messing with all this other
stuff.
