Transfer or delete user account

[Markus Ernst]

Hello

When I first got my new PC with Windows XP Pro I just started work. Now
I wanted to change the name of my account from "Administrator" to
another name and ended up in creating a new account.

After the first moment of horror I figured out how to log in as
"Administrator" again and learnt about the nature of this account. But
now I have the problem that all my data and settings are in the
Administrator account, which is not comfortable to log in as, and not
recommended for use either.

I would like to do one of the following:

Preferred: Transfer all data and settings from the Administrator account
to the new one or duplicate the Administrator account into a new one

Or: Delete the new account to go back to the original situation.

But I don't find out how to do either of them.

Thanks for every hint!

Markus

 

[Nepatsfan]

Hello

When I first got my new PC with Windows XP Pro I just
started work. Now I wanted to change the name of my account
from "Administrator" to another name and ended up in
creating a new account.
After the first moment of horror I figured out how to log in
as "Administrator" again and learnt about the nature of this
account. But now I have the problem that all my data and
settings are in the Administrator account, which is not
comfortable to log in as, and not recommended for use either.

I would like to do one of the following:

Preferred: Transfer all data and settings from the
Administrator account to the new one or duplicate the
Administrator account into a new one
Or: Delete the new account to go back to the original
situation.
But I don't find out how to do either of them.

Thanks for every hint!

Markus

Take a look at this article:

How to copy data from a corrupted user profile to a new profile
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811151

What you'll need to do is create a temporary account that is a
computer administrator. Call it whatever you want. Log on with
that account and copy the files from the Administrator folder
into your account's folder. Once you've completed the transfer,
log on with your account and check to see if all the files you
expected to retain were copied. If everything checks out OK,
you can delete the temporary account you created earlier.

Good luck

Nepatsfan

 

[Markus Ernst]

Take a look at this article:

How to copy data from a corrupted user profile to a new profile
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811151

What you'll need to do is create a temporary account that is a
computer administrator. Call it whatever you want. Log on with
that account and copy the files from the Administrator folder
into your account's folder. Once you've completed the transfer,
log on with your account and check to see if all the files you
expected to retain were copied. If everything checks out OK,
you can delete the temporary account you created earlier.

Thank you very much, this is most helpful indeed! As I use Thunderbird
for mail and news, I did not even have to transfer e-mail data separately.

At first sight there is only one thing missing: Is there a way to
transfer desktop settings, too?

 

[Nepatsfan]

Thank you very much, this is most helpful indeed! As I use
Thunderbird for mail and news, I did not even have to
transfer e-mail data separately.
At first sight there is only one thing missing: Is there a
way to transfer desktop settings, too?

If you want to transfer the desktop settings, you've got two
options:

Option #1. Copy all the files in the Administrator folder. In
other words don't exclude the three files that Microsoft lists
in that article, ntuser.dat, ntuser.ini and ntuser.dat.log.
This is a risky approach. It will probably work if both
accounts are of the same type such as Computer Administrators.
There is a better option.

Option #2. Copy the User Profile as outlined in this article:

How do I copy a user profile in Windows XP?
http://www.petri.co.il/copy_user_profiles_in_windows_xp.htm

Note: When you get to the point in the procedure where you're
going to assign the user account that's permitted to use the
profile you can make things a little easier by doing the
following:

After you hit the Change button in the "Permitted to Use"
section of "Copy To", the "Select User or Group" dialog box
will appear. Click on the Advanced button. This will expand the
dialog box revealing the "Find Now" button. Click on it and
select the correct user account from the box.

Following this procedure avoids many of the problems that could
result from using Option #1.

Good luck

Nepatsfan

 

[Markus Ernst]

Option #2. Copy the User Profile as outlined in this article:

How do I copy a user profile in Windows XP?
http://www.petri.co.il/copy_user_profiles_in_windows_xp.htm

Note: When you get to the point in the procedure where you're
going to assign the user account that's permitted to use the
profile you can make things a little easier by doing the
following:

After you hit the Change button in the "Permitted to Use"
section of "Copy To", the "Select User or Group" dialog box
will appear. Click on the Advanced button. This will expand the
dialog box revealing the "Find Now" button. Click on it and
select the correct user account from the box.

Following this procedure avoids many of the problems that could
result from using Option #1.

Thanks a lot for this very detailled and helpful answer. After copying
the profile I found it was 7 GB - and as I only needed desktop settings
I decided to change them manually (which took me not more than 10
minutes, though...).

I am impressed by the fast and valuable help found in this group!

Thanks
Markus

 

[Nepatsfan]

Thanks a lot for this very detailled and helpful answer.
After copying the profile I found it was 7 GB - and as I
only needed desktop settings I decided to change them
manually (which took me not more than 10 minutes, though...).

I am impressed by the fast and valuable help found in this
group!
Thanks
Markus

You're welcome.

Nepatsfan