IT Solutions Blog | Trigon Technology

Standardization of User Desktop

Don't you hate it when you log into a workstation for the first time and the only thing available is the Recycle Bin and any icons in the "All Users" Desktop folder?  Do you wish there was an easy way to have all users to have a different interface when they first log on?  Well, there is - the Default User folder in Windows XP.

Once you log into a workstation that you want users to have a common interface on first logon, configure it the way you want it.  Change Internet Explorer settings, set Windows Explorer preferences, put icons on the Desktop (My Computer, My Documents, My Network Places, etc.), even disabling Adobe and Java update notifications. 

Once the interface is how you want all users to see it on first logon, restart the computer and login as another user (such as the local administrator).  Right-click My Computer, click Properties, go to the Advanced tab and click on the Settings button under the "User Profile" area.  Click on your login, click the "Copy To" button and put "C:\Documents and Settings\Default User" in the field for "Copy profile to" and be sure to click on the Change button and give Everyone Full Control permissions (otherwise, you will have access errors and it won't work for non-administrative users).  Once you click OK, you will be given a pop-up about the information already existing and you will overwrite what is there.  Click Yes to complete the copy process.

Not only does this make sure that any new users to the workstation receive an identical login, it also gives you exactly the interface that you want everyone to see (even if it is only once) without a whole lot of difficulties.  Another great thing to do is after completing this process is to copy the Default User folder to another location and storing it elsewhere so that if the workstation gets corrupt (or you install from an image file), you can simply copy the folder back to the C:\Documents and Settings location and all settings will be retained.  You can also copy the folder to other workstations of the same make and model (sometimes even different models will work OK - make a backup copy first!!) so that if you haven't logged into a workstation yet, you will get the new interface without even having to do anything on that workstation.

The only problem with this is that once a user first logs in, they are free to change their profile any way they want (unless security policies prevent user changes).  Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do about this but at least the first time someone logs in, they will get a nice interface, complete with modifications, right from the start.  It will also give you access to exactly what you want on the first login without having to go through the same modifications every time you go to a new workstation.