Windows 7 Best Practices: separation of user data from system drive

What is the best way to separate user data from the system drive in Windows 7 so that you can restore a known good system image in the event of malware attack, system drive problem, or other system instability, such as a failed application install?

I've done a lot of googling and the answers tend fail into one of two camps:

1. Microsoft approved "manual" method of moving specific user folders via "Properties"'s "Location" tab
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2. Moving entire Users directory -- via Robocopy or Xcopy -- in conjunction with symbolic links (via mklink).

This was fairly straight-forward in XP. I've been able to restore prior system images as needed with my user data being unaffected and everything works: only need to redo any updates & recent installations of apps. I'm looking to do the same in Windows 7.

So which method is best without risking future problems?

Or, even better question, which method would you use if your mom asked you to set up her Win7 machine for her ... and you know you'll be called if disaster strikes down the road?

I would like to know this too :bump:

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one with unanswered questions. :)

I did uncover a question asked back May in a Win 7 Technet forum LINK

Quote:

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I am helping our customers to deploy Windows 7 and to mitigate all application compatibility issues. Since all the users will logon as standard user, so we rely on UAC virtualization (file and registry virtualization) to resolve most of the incompatibilities issues and it works as expected.

Now, customers wish to relocate the user profiles from C:\ to D:\ (I mean relocating the entire user profiles C:\Users, not the user profile folders) and that cause UAC virtualization to fail and hence cause many new application compatibility issues.

We tried many ways to relcate the user profiles, such as using the ProfilesDirectory in unattended.txt or other methods we found from internet. All caused the UAC virtualization to fail.

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There was only 1 reply :( and it was from Juke Chou, Microsoft Contingent Staff, Moderator.

Quote:

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There is not any document to indicate the UAC Virtualization of Windows 7 can support the relocated user profile. So I assume this is by design.

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Seems to me to suggest moving the entire Users folder might cause some hassles for enthusiasts, but is a serious problem when a user is restricted to a be "standard user."
Of course, my I was quite tired by the time I started reading more about UAC Virtualization. But that's what I get out of it.

No luck here either.

Read lifehacker's post which uses the Robocopy method

Also found a youtube video where the guy installs Win7 and uses Robocopy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koST74INsb0

I am not gonna try this on my PC. Perhaps, when I reinstall windows I may try it.

Ashwin, you might want to take a look at this article in PC World: just moves folders in a profile. Interestingly he includes moving Roaming in ...\AppData\ and a folder for Outlook / Live Mail further down in ...\AppData\Local\ (unique in all articles I've read.)

Interestingly, this method left some AppData folders behind when I tried it. Guess W7 really doesn't want them move. One remainder here is permissions. They need to be changed because permissions are inherited from those for the Data drive itself. Pointed out in one of the comments and in other articles.

One of the most intriguing articles I ran across is HERE. It's notable for listing 3 shortcomings of the "MS approved" method and the depth and detail of the article as well the number (> 170), depth and quality of the comments.

Mainly, I really appreciate the fact he mentions specific shortcoming and potential issues to consider. Most article don't & the few how do just say there are some but don't go into specifics :upset: Read enough of these articles and it very obvious there are "cobras" in some of the under brush. Nice to finally be told where some of them lurk!

It was in the comments that I found reference to a modular script that moves some of the profile folders for the Default User and creates the needed symbolic links as well as making the moving profile folders hidden (I've read elsewhere Media Player gets confused otherwise.) There's an authorized English translation HERE of the original post in French VOICI

NOTE: you want to get the Multilanguage ( FRE & EN) script from the French page because it's been updated and handles permission management. 1st listed and filename ends with "-ML-S.rar"

I plan to go through the script to see all the stuff he does and then do some experimenting next with the new W7 machine I'm building.

P.S. Unfortunately can't remember exactly where, but I discovered one commenter reporting that moving C:\Users\ working on standalone machines but stuff getting seriously broken on ones that are part of a domain.

Eventually I'll do some experiments about the moving C:\Users\, probably during a clean install via an unattended xml file (MS does mention some support of this). One day I would like to join the SSD club... but that isn't this year. ;)

I'm interested too..

btw currently making Full System Copy.