Changes to Mandatory Profiles Saved When Logging On at Local Console (156364)

SYMPTOMS

Desktop configuration changes are saved to mandatory profiles when a user logs on to a local computer and the shared profile path points to the local %SystemRoot%\Profiles directory.

CAUSE

The %SystemRoot%\Profiles directory is used to store local profiles. Cached versions of roaming and mandatory profiles downloaded from profile servers are also stored in %SystemRoot%\Profiles. The problem occurs when the same directory is used for local and server-based profiles.

The Ntuser file is always updated to the local %SystemRoot%\Profiles directory when the user logs off the local console, even when mandatory profiles are being used. In this case, the local profile information is being written back to the same location as the mandatory profile. The Ntuser.man file is overwritten when the user logs off and the latest desktop changes appear for all users or groups using that profile.

RESOLUTION

Administrators should avoid using the %SystemRoot%\Profiles directory for roaming and mandatory profiles. For best results either:

Create a new directory and share other than %SystemRoot%\Profiles, preferably on an NTFS partition.

-or-
Use the home directory share with the following syntax:

\\<ServerName>\<ShareName>\%<UserName>%\Profiles

Do not use \\<ServerName>\<HomeShare>\%<UserName>% because the entire home directory will be copied over when attempting to log on. The time it takes to copy this directory can give the appearance of the computer not responding as potentially large amounts of data are copied to the client workstation during the log on attempt.