User Profile - Account Unknown

[Lem]

I noticed that under System Properties > Advanced > User Profiles >
Settings, in addition to the Administrator account and the user profiles
I have set up, there is an entry for "Account Unknown." The delete
button is greyed-out for this entry.

What is this; should I be concerned; how can I delete it?

In Googling, I've seen an "Account Unknown" issue for pre-SP1 XP Home
systems, but I'm running XP pro with SP2. (The solution for that issue
was to install SP1).

A perhaps related issue (perhaps the cause) is that sometime ago I
created and then deleted a user profile. Although this profile does not
appear on Control Panel > User Profiles or on System Properties >
Advanced > User Profiles > Settings, the file structure for the profile
remains on the hard drive under C:\Documents and Settings\. I've
attempted to move or delete this file structure (to see if the "Account
Unknown" entry would go away), but I can't do that because I get the
message that ntuser.dat can't be moved or deleted because it's in use.

Any suggestions?

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

It may be referring to a visible system account. Start/run lusrmgr.msc,
click on the Users folder to examine the User and System accounts.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

 

[Lem]

Hi,

It may be referring to a visible system account. Start/run lusrmgr.msc,
click on the Users folder to examine the User and System accounts.

Nothing about an Unknown Account in Local Users & Groups. In addition
to the Administrator account, the Guest account, and the user accounts I
had set up, lusrmgr.msc shows 3 more user accounts: ASPNET, and two
disabled accounts: HelpAssistant (for Remote Desktop) and another
account, which says it is "a vendor's account for the Help and Support
Service."

 

[Lem]

Thanks. I had seen an MSKB article about this, but as you point out, that issue
is for XP Home, and the solution was to install SP1. As I noted in my original
post, my system is XP pro with SP2.