“When Windows XP is installed on a desktop machine and a person logs on for the first time, a user profile is created for him. This user profile contains per-user settings contained in a Registry hive called NTUSER.DAT and also folders like Desktop, Start Menu, and My Documents that are specific to the desktop environment for that user. These user profiles separate the desktop environment and personal data files for each user, which is an important consideration if more than one person will be using the machine. By default, all user profiles (plus special profiles like Default User and All Users) are found in the Documents and Settings folder on the system drive of the machine.

“When somebody first logs on, her user profile is created through a process that involves several steps. First, a copy is made of the Default User profile, and the new folder is named after the name of the user account associated with the user. This is handy because it means that if you are performing an image-based deployment of Windows XP on your network, you can customize the Default User profile and its folders before you image your base system. Then when you deploy your images, users will log on to their machines and their own user profiles will be similarly customized.” [Read more...]