Procedure: Customizing Default User settings

[steves]

This is my process for customizing the Default User Settings.
I like it, because it keeps all of my HKCU settings in one place.
I offer it as a help to others, and would welcome any comments.

SteveS
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

=============================================================

Default user settings are stored in a hidden file, C:\Documents and
Settings\NTUSER.dat, which is used to initialize each new user as it is
created. I use a script during my pre-fba copy/install to replace the
default NTUSER.dat file with a customized one.

Customizing NTUSER.DAT is a two-step process.

First, create DefaultUser.reg file to store all of the customizations.
In this file, customize the key [HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser].

For, example:
Begin Reg File ********************************************************

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
"ScreenSaveActive"="1"
"ScreenSaveTimeout"="600"
"ScreenSaverIsSecure"="0"
"SCRNSAVE.EXE"="C:\Windows\System32\ssMyPics.scr"

End Reg File ********************************************************

Second, customize the NTUSER.DAT as follows:
1) After building your configuration, open the Windows Embedded Images
folder, and copy the C:\Documents and Settings\NTUSER.Dat (and it's
..log)
file to the same folder where you created your DefaultUser.Reg.
2) Open Regedit, Select HKEY_USERS
3) Select File, Load Hive, find the saved NTUSER.DAT from
step 1. Assign it the name 'DefaultUser'
4) In windows explorer, double click on Default.User.Reg, and allow it
to apply changes.
5) back in Regedit, select the HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser brand, and then
File, Unload hive.
6) Exit Regedit.

Now, when I copy my image to the target, I replace the NTUSER.dat with
the customized one (as part of my copy script), and the customizations
are applied to all accounts. Since this is all done before FBA, even
the built-in accounts get the defaults.

Caveat 1: Some key are apparently overwritten for the administrator
account during FBA. I think you could add a component
with
a late-(phase 8500) FBA generic command to fix the
relevant keys.
use the HKEY_CURRENT_USER branch.
Caveat 2: I think on a domain, the default user data comes from the
domain server...

Steves
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

 

[KM]

steves,

Why not use TD Extra Registry section (or a custom component registry) and work with HKUS\.DEFAULT branch?

 

[steves]

KM,

I think i probably just haven't evolved that far yet... Part of why I
posted was to hope to hear a suggestion for a better way...

I find that as I learn about an XPE topic I tend to progress through
these stages:
1) Make it work manually. (Via UI interaction, registry hack or
whatever
2) Script it (via command script, .reg file, etc)
3) Componentize it.

Apparently my 'Default User Settings' procedure has stuck at step 2!
Thanks.

Steves
StevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

steves,

Why not use TD Extra Registry section (or a custom component registry) and work with HKUS\.DEFAULT branch?

--
=========
Regards,
KM

This is my process for customizing the Default User Settings.
I like it, because it keeps all of my HKCU settings in one place.
I offer it as a help to others, and would welcome any comments.

SteveS
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

=============================================================

Default user settings are stored in a hidden file, C:\Documents and
Settings\NTUSER.dat, which is used to initialize each new user as it is
created. I use a script during my pre-fba copy/install to replace the
default NTUSER.dat file with a customized one.

Customizing NTUSER.DAT is a two-step process.

First, create DefaultUser.reg file to store all of the customizations.
In this file, customize the key [HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser].

For, example:
Begin Reg File ********************************************************

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
"ScreenSaveActive"="1"
"ScreenSaveTimeout"="600"
"ScreenSaverIsSecure"="0"
"SCRNSAVE.EXE"="C:\Windows\System32\ssMyPics.scr"

End Reg File ********************************************************

Second, customize the NTUSER.DAT as follows:
1) After building your configuration, open the Windows Embedded Images
folder, and copy the C:\Documents and Settings\NTUSER.Dat (and it's
.log)
file to the same folder where you created your DefaultUser.Reg.
2) Open Regedit, Select HKEY_USERS
3) Select File, Load Hive, find the saved NTUSER.DAT from
step 1. Assign it the name 'DefaultUser'
4) In windows explorer, double click on Default.User.Reg, and allow it
to apply changes.
5) back in Regedit, select the HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser brand, and then
File, Unload hive.
6) Exit Regedit.

Now, when I copy my image to the target, I replace the NTUSER.dat with
the customized one (as part of my copy script), and the customizations
are applied to all accounts. Since this is all done before FBA, even
the built-in accounts get the defaults.

Caveat 1: Some key are apparently overwritten for the administrator
account during FBA. I think you could add a component
with
a late-(phase 8500) FBA generic command to fix the
relevant keys.
use the HKEY_CURRENT_USER branch.
Caveat 2: I think on a domain, the default user data comes from the
domain server...

Steves
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

 

[steves]

Regarding the setup phases and registry keys, Slobodan posted some good
info in this thread:

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...shutdown?+&qt_g=1&searchnow=Search+this+group

 

[steves]

steves,

Why not use TD Extra Registry section (or a custom component registry) and work with HKUS\.DEFAULT branch?

I have now tried this and it is far superior to the method I have
posted earlier.
Registry data created in a component under HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT applies
automatically to all users. Very nice.

Thanks KM

Also, I have realized that the method that I posted earlier suffers
from a serious deficiency in that you must perform the entire procedure
each time you build from TD. If instead you use a saved version of
NTUSER.DAT from an earlier build (which is what I was doing - i thought
NTUSER.DAT was just a static, generic file), any changes to the .slx
configuration that affect the HKEY_USERS branch will not appear,
because you are overwriting the HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT branch with data
from an earlier build. This was causing me much confusion because I
did not understand how this worked. Therefore I must recommend that
this procedure not be followed.

SteveS
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

=========
Regards,
KM

This is my process for customizing the Default User Settings.
I like it, because it keeps all of my HKCU settings in one place.
I offer it as a help to others, and would welcome any comments.

SteveS
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom

=============================================================

Default user settings are stored in a hidden file, C:\Documents and
Settings\NTUSER.dat, which is used to initialize each new user as it is
created. I use a script during my pre-fba copy/install to replace the
default NTUSER.dat file with a customized one.

Customizing NTUSER.DAT is a two-step process.

First, create DefaultUser.reg file to store all of the customizations.
In this file, customize the key [HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser].

For, example:
Begin Reg File ********************************************************

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
"ScreenSaveActive"="1"
"ScreenSaveTimeout"="600"
"ScreenSaverIsSecure"="0"
"SCRNSAVE.EXE"="C:\Windows\System32\ssMyPics.scr"

End Reg File ********************************************************

Second, customize the NTUSER.DAT as follows:
1) After building your configuration, open the Windows Embedded Images
folder, and copy the C:\Documents and Settings\NTUSER.Dat (and it's
.log)
file to the same folder where you created your DefaultUser.Reg.
2) Open Regedit, Select HKEY_USERS
3) Select File, Load Hive, find the saved NTUSER.DAT from
step 1. Assign it the name 'DefaultUser'
4) In windows explorer, double click on Default.User.Reg, and allow it
to apply changes.
5) back in Regedit, select the HKEY_USERS\DefaultUser brand, and then
File, Unload hive.
6) Exit Regedit.

Now, when I copy my image to the target, I replace the NTUSER.dat with
the customized one (as part of my copy script), and the customizations
are applied to all accounts. Since this is all done before FBA, even
the built-in accounts get the defaults.

Caveat 1: Some key are apparently overwritten for the administrator
account during FBA. I think you could add a component
with
a late-(phase 8500) FBA generic command to fix the
relevant keys.
use the HKEY_CURRENT_USER branch.
Caveat 2: I think on a domain, the default user data comes from the
domain server...

Steves
stevesATeyeDASHimagingDOTcom