Sorting out my users/folders

stub · 05 Nov 2017

Caledon Ken said:

Hi stub.
Just following along.
https://www.howtogeek.com/255653/how...mac-and-linux/

Thanks. This was useful info, but a lot to go thru.
My first question would be do you have any idea which file would be controlling the location/path of the downloads.
My second question would be what program should I use to view/edit/save any file? Because I did find some files pointing to \Users\x\.. (a theoretically non-existent folder), which has been renamed \Users\MyShortName\.., which I would like to correct, whilst I'm there.
My third question would be is there an easier way to do this? By uninstalling/reinstalling Chrome? Would all my bookmarks and stuff be redownloaded from my microsoft.com or google.com account?

Thanks you in advance.

Caledon Ken · 05 Nov 2017

Not sure that I can answer all your questions.

Chrome downloads, click on three dots upper right, then settings, then three bars upper left, then click on advance, then download. This is where chrome will put your downloads unless you set to ask. I set to "ask" as I want to put files away in the right spot when received.

Not sure how to answer Q2. In general each file extension is associated with a program. Example a .docx is a Word file that is edited by Word or another program that can read the format, like Libre Office. PDF's can be read by lots of stuff on your system, Edge, Chrome and Adobe to mention three. File explore can be used to move or copy files.

In searching Google I can't find who owns the BLCTMP folder. Seems Windows 10 apps also use.

If you are signed into Chrome and you are saving / syncing then your bookmarks will be re-installed when you sign back in. Check what you are syncing in Chrome. So you could uninstall Chrome and reload. To be sure go to another computer, log in to Chrome and confirm your stuff is in your google account. (usually your gmail address.) Microsoft.com has nothing to do with Chrome. If you happened to use your gmail address as a userid for MS it is just that, a user name in Microsoft.

Ken

stub · 05 Nov 2017

OK. I'm going to uninstall Chrome and reload it. I think that will be easiest solution for me. I'll let you know if it resolves the problem. Thanks.

OK. I've deleted \Users\x again and I've uninstalled and reinstalled Chrome. I got all my passwords and bookmarks back. So I hope this will solve this problem. Once and for all. I've got to go to sleep now. I'm expecting this problem to be resolved in the morning. Let's wait and see.

stub · 13 Nov 2017

OK. It's been a week. I've been busy with this as well as a ton of other stuff. And I just didn't want to continually say every day that everything I tried didn't work. I couldn't find anything in Edge or Chrome which was triggering this. But I think, fingers crossed. I think I might have found an answer. It might take say 2 days to be sure that C:\Users\x doesn't get created any more. It was really pissing me off.

So I was having a maybe (semi-)unrelated problem because my C:\Users\MyShort Name didn't appear to have the administrator privileges I was expecting to have. And what did I find when I looked at the users? There was no "MyShortName" in there. only "x". So I've renamed "x" to "MyShortName", and now I not only have admin privileges, but my C:\Users\x folder hasn't come back, even though I have opened and closed both Edge & Chrome, without this re-creating the C:\Users\x path & profile. Which has never happened before. It had always created the C:\Users\x file after opening either Edge of Chrome.

So. IMHO. The solution given to this problem is too simple, and not enough detail. It should include going to Windows+R, enter lusrmgr.msc, and examine the users carefully. What I found was there was no "MyShortName" user (even though I was logged in and using it), but the original "x" user was still there with administrator privileges. By simply changing user "x" to "MyShortName", everything was resolved. (At least so far).

This might have come 5 pages after the original question. But if the original answer could be enhanced by this solution, it might save others a lot of heartache.

Brink · 13 Nov 2017

Stub,

I'm glad to hear you were able to get this sorted.

It sounds like you may have had some other issue with the account name before trying to change the name of its profile folder causing some sort of mix up.

You wouldn't normally need to open lusrmgr.msc when only renaming the profile folder since lusrmgr.msc affects the account name instead.

stub · 13 Nov 2017

Yeah. But what I'm saying is that my renaming of my "x" user must not have been done in perhaps the 100% correct way, because it did not get renamed when looking at the users with lusrmgr.msc. I wasn't even aware of lusrmgr.msc until yesterday. So I'm wondering if this is some kind of "higher authority" when renaming users than a simple command line rename. Even though I have been logged in and using the renamed account.

But anyway. This hasn't resolved the problem. I did say that I'd have to wait a couple of days to see if it truely worked. And when I woke up this morning, User "x" was back again. Grrrr. So this seems to be happening all by itself, even when I'm not using the computer. I'm still suspecting Chrome. I'm going to try deleting it again and reinstall it, now that I've renamed "x" in lusrmgr.msc

stub · 22 Nov 2017

OK. Another week or more gone by, and deleting Users\x and all it's subfolders Users\x\AppData\Local\Temp\BCLTMP\ every day. Sometimes more than once a day. Then I bought System Mechanic, not because I was thinking of this problem, but thinking it might be/is a pretty good cleanup program. I was kinda shocked that it found 1900+ things to correct in total for a machine which is less than 2 months old. And to be honest, not used much, although it's on 24hrs/day. I studied everything it was going to delete very carefully. One thing it said was either/or Explorer or Edge were trying to access this path. Even though neither program has been opened. But it probably was reporting from day 1 of the machine. I also did not allow it to delete anything I was unsure of (about 3 or 4 items). However the only 2 folders below \BCLTMP\ were always \edge and \chrome (as well as Firefox until I stopped using it). Which was why I was always suspecting Chrome. Anyhow. I let System Mechanic do it's work. IMHO. It did a good job. And since running this application, Users\x has not once resurfaced in about 2-3 days. Which is fantastic news, if it stays that way. I don't have 100% certainty why this user\path was continually created blank. But it seems (at least for the last 2-3 days) that System Mechanic has resolved the problem. I also do not have 100% certainty why this was ever/even a problem. But I hope I've seen the last of this problem :)

stub · 27 Nov 2017

FI. The Users\x folder is back again haunting me.