User profiles

User profiles

Users should never use the same profile for their normal workstation logon and their TS sessions (to avoid profile corruption).
To set a TS-specific roaming profile:

1. Use the "Terminal Services Profile" tab in the AD account properties

or
2. use a Group Policy, linked to the OU which contains the Terminal Server machine account, and configure the setting

Computer Configuration - Administrative templates - Windows components - Terminal Services
"Set path for TS roaming profiles"

Note that you should not add %username% here, just something like \\server\TSprofiles.

To avoid filling up your system disk on the TS, combine both options above with the following setting (see KB 274152):

Computer Configuration - Administrative templates - System - User profiles
"Delete cached copies of roaming profiles"

And to make troubleshooting of user profiles a bit easier, configure this setting as well:

Computer Configuration - Administrative templates - System - User profiles
"Add the Administrators security group to roaming user profiles"

Vista / 2008

User profile design has changed with Vista and Windows 2008. Here's information about the new Version 2 user profiles and how to migrate from Version 1 (XP, 2003) profiles to Version 2 profiles:

• 947025 - Support guidelines for migrating roaming user profiles data to Windows Vista or to Windows Server 2008
• Managing Roaming User Data Deployment Guide

Configuration

• 246132 - User Profile and Home Directory Behavior with Terminal Services
• Using User Profiles in Windows Server 2003
• sepagoPROFILE: A comprehensive profile solution - white paper describing the concepts behind Windows user profiles and explaining common pitfalls and how to avoid them
• CTX110351 - User Profile Best Practices for MetaFrame Presentation Server
• 325364 - HOW TO: Create a Custom Default User Profile in the Windows Server 2003 Family
• 305709 - HOW TO: Create a Custom Default User Profile - W2K
• 321281 - The Desktop.ini File Does Not Work Correctly When You Create a Custom Default Profile - XP, 2003
• 236621 - Cannot Move or Rename the Documents and Settings Folder - W2K, 2003
• 817361 - Force Local Profile Option in Windows 2000
• 843261 - You cannot use Group Policy settings to configure Terminal Services roaming user profiles on a Windows 2000-based Terminal server - preSP5 hotfix
• 243535 - Terminal Services Client Roaming Profile Is Inconsistent or Overwritten
• 287566 - The Cache Option for Offline Files Must Be Disabled on Roaming User Profile Shares
• 327259 - Windows Server 2003 Checks for Pre-Created Roaming Profile Folders When You Make a Roaming User Profile
• 327462 - Windows XP SP1 and Windows 2000 SP4 Check for Existing Roaming User Profile Folders When a Roaming User Profile Is Created
• 320186 - HOW TO: Clean Profiles By Using the Cprofile Command in Terminal Services
• 944917 - Windows Vista uses the profile path that is defined on the Terminal Services Profile tab instead of on the Profile tab when a user logs on to a Windows Vista-based client computer by using a Remote Desktop session

Profile Load and Unload errors during Logon & logoff

• Download UPHClean v1.6 for 32-bit OS - the User Profile Hive Cleanup service helps to ensure user sessions are completely terminated when a user logs off
• Download UPHClean v2.0 beta for 64-bit OS
• CTX101705 - Troubleshooting Slow Logons
• 837115 - Troubleshooting profile unload issues
• 887434 - "Failed to load Terminal Server Profile path" event message is logged on a Windows Server 2003-based computer
• 911805 - You cannot load or unload a roaming user profile if it contains EFS files on a Windows XP-based or a Windows Server 2003-based client
• 928096 - A Windows Server 2003-based terminal server crashes when 30 to 40 users use roaming profiles to log on to or log off the terminal server - with Citrix MF and old version of UPHClean
• 933562 - Index.dat files are not deleted from the server when a user logs off a Terminal Services session to a Windows Server 2003-based computer
• 935642 - Error message and the terminal server roaming profile is not loaded when you log on to a Windows Server 2003-based terminal server
• 935649 - Error message when you try to log on to a Windows Server 2003-based terminal server: "Windows cannot load the user's profile but has logged you on with the default profile for the system"
• 944984 - The user profile may not be correctly unloaded when you log off from a Windows Server 2003-based computer, and event 1517 is logged
• 949665 - Roaming profiles do not work after migration from Windows 2000 to Windows Server 2003
• 951029 - User profiles are corrupted after you log off from a remote desktop session to a Windows Server 2003 Terminal Server on which Symantec AntiVirus 10.1 is installed


Windows 2000 specific
• 289564 - Issues When Windows 2000 Loads and Unloads Profile
• 293660 - Cannot Save Terminal Services Profile Locally If You Are a Member of a Guest Group on the Terminal Server
• 817171 - Roaming Profiles Are Not Unloaded on a Computer That Is Running Terminal Services - IE 6 on W2K
• 827825 - "Windows Cannot Unload Your Registry Class File" Error Message When You Log Off Terminal Services - pre-SP5 hotfix
• 828153 - UsrClasses Hive Does Not Unload During Logoff Because of an Intermittent Handle Leak in Spoolsv.exe - pre-SP5 hotfix
• 893104 - The Winlogon.exe system process quits without unloading the user profile when the screen saver starts on a Windows 2000 Terminal Server at the same time that you log off from a Terminal Services session - preSP5 hotfix

3rd party Profile management solutions

• sepagoPROFILE