setting up User to store on HDD with Windows on SSD

fireman0175 · 16 Oct 2015

I have installed 10 and Office suite on my SSD (drive C). I have a clean fomatted HDD (A) that I want to store User media files (documents, pictures, videos, music, Outlook PST) files on. I have named my PC "Main". I would like that to be the hidden Administrator account and use my User name of Fred and a second User name of Wilma. Microsoft Help desk can't seem to assist me.

I would like all of those files to automatically be stored on the HDD. I had backed up those media files on an external HDD and will be recovering those after this is set up on the A drive.

Thanks in advance!

Kari · 16 Oct 2015

For the first, please change the drive letter of your data drive. There is a reason why Windows starts identifying hard disk partitions from C: and not A:, letters A and B are reserved for removable media, remnants from the floppy disk time, and they should in no circumstances be used for hard drives or partitions on a hard drive.

Then, moving all user data to another drive can be done in various ways. See this tutorial on our sister site the Seven Forums, the method applies also to Windows 10: User Folders - Change Default Location - Windows 7 Help Forums

You can also completely relocate the whole Users folder to another drive as told in this tutorial: Users Folder - Move Location in Windows 10 - Windows 10 Forums. However, although this method works flawless when done on a fresh clean install, at the moment the Windows 10 built-in Sysprep tool used for it has a bug, an issue causing existing user accounts to lose functionality of the Start Menu and the Search. All new accounts created after the procedure will be totally OK. If you check this tutorial, please read the tutorial carefully through first, then check a few pages at the end of the tutorial thread where this issue when done on an existing system has been widely discussed.

I am sure Microsoft will fix the Sysprep issue in the future builds of Windows 10 but at the moment, take the above warning seriously. Personally I only recommend to use the Sysprep method at the moment, until the bug has been fixed, on new clean installs only.

Kari

fireman0175 · 17 Oct 2015

Thanks for the the advice. However, I had already (unknowingly) named it drive B and created the paths to B:\users\fred\music. Can I simply change the drive letter in disk management? Or do I have to do that, then change all the paths for media files, PST files, etc?

Kari said:

For the first, please change the drive letter of your data drive. There is a reason why Windows starts identifying hard disk partitions from C: and not A:, letters A and B are reserved for removable media, remnants from the floppy disk time, and they should in no circumstances be used for hard drives or partitions on a hard drive.

Then, moving all user data to another drive can be done in various ways. See this tutorial on our sister site the Seven Forums, the method applies also to Windows 10: User Folders - Change Default Location - Windows 7 Help Forums

You can also completely relocate the whole Users folder to another drive as told in this tutorial: Users Folder - Move Location in Windows 10 - Windows 10 Forums. However, although this method works flawless when done on a fresh clean install, at the moment the Windows 10 built-in Sysprep tool used for it has a bug, an issue causing existing user accounts to lose functionality of the Start Menu and the Search. All new accounts created after the procedure will be totally OK. If you check this tutorial, please read the tutorial carefully through first, then check a few pages at the end of the tutorial thread where this issue when done on an existing system has been widely discussed.

I am sure Microsoft will fix the Sysprep issue in the future builds of Windows 10 but at the moment, take the above warning seriously. Personally I only recommend to use the Sysprep method at the moment, until the bug has been fixed, on new clean installs only.

Kari

Kari · 18 Oct 2015

fireman0175 said:

Thanks for the the advice. However, I had already (unknowingly) named it drive B and created the paths to B:\users\fred\music. Can I simply change the drive letter in disk management? Or do I have to do that, then change all the paths for media files, PST files, etc?

One of cons with A and B drives is that Windows does not index them. This means that searching them takes longer, which is not good especially when user data, media, documents, pics and such will be stored on these drives.

If you change the drive letter to something else (partitions on HDD and SSD should have ID from range C to Z), it does not change the paths. Let's say you change that drive B: now to drive G:, your path to the Music would still be B:\Users\Fred\Music which would of course not work.

If it was me, I would start from scratch. Empty the drive, remove all paths made / created by my, give the drive a new ID, copy my data there and so on. Your decision: You might want to keep everything as it is, the data stored on drive B: which if you are and remain lucky just might work for you, not bring issues for you in the future.

OldMike65 · 18 Oct 2015

I agree with Kari (cough, cough :) ) on this, I am surprised windows even allowed you to name a HD to A or B I don't think Windows should have myself for ALL the reasons stated by Kari. :) I would also start over, maybe backup any files before changing their drive letters just to be safe, then renaming then to any letter like Kari suggested.

Gary · 18 Oct 2015

OldMike65 said:

I agree with Kari (cough, cough :) ) on this, I am surprised windows even allowed you to name a HD to A or B I don't think Windows should have myself for ALL the reasons stated by Kari. :) I would also start over, maybe backup any files before changing their drive letters just to be safe, then renaming then to any letter like Kari suggested.

Windows allows many things they should not, but remember there still are users with Floppy Disks somewhere out there.

Kari · 18 Oct 2015

Gary said:

Windows allows many things they should not, but remember there still are users with Floppy Disks somewhere out there.

Exactly. Those drive IDs are still needed but should be only used for removable media.

OldMike65 · 18 Oct 2015

Gary said:

Windows allows many things they should not, but remember there still are users with Floppy Disks somewhere out there.

No WAY !!!! hahahahahaha holy smokes that is hard to believe, don't think you can even buy floppy disks or the 3.5 ones anywhere???? WoW

fracking4oil · 18 Oct 2015

You should be able to go to Settings -> System -> Storage and change them there; although I changed mine manually by right clicking the folder, selecting properties and changing the drive letter under location.

setting up User to store on HDD with Windows on SSD-capture.jpg

setting up User to store on HDD with Windows on SSD-capture2.jpg

Gary · 18 Oct 2015

OldMike65 said:

No WAY !!!! hahahahahaha holy smokes that is hard to believe, don't think you can even buy floppy disks or the 3.5 ones anywhere???? WoW

I had an old Zip Drive laying around and tried to install it an I got a pop up that it would be installed as Drive A: I never installed it and took it to a parts recycle program yesterday along with some other junk I had laying around.