In Windows, what is a user profile, and how do I copy one user profile to another?

A Microsoft Windows user profile describes the Windows configuration for a specific user, including the user's environment and preference settings. The user profile contains those settings and configuration options specific to the user, such as installed applications, desktop icons, and color options. This profile is built in part from System Policy information (for example, those things that a user has access to and those things that the user can and cannot change) and in part from permitted, saved changes that a user makes to customize the desktop.

If you have administrative privileges, you can copy one user profile to another; follow the steps below for your operating system.

Note: At Indiana University, the University Information Security Office (UISO) recommends that you normally refrain from running your Windows computer as an administrator. For more, see What is the principle of least privilege?

Note: As copying one profile to another will completely overwrite the target profile, you should back up any important data before copying over a profile. It is also a good idea to test these steps on a test profile before copying over a profile in use.

Windows Vista

1. From the Start menu, click Control Panel, and then select System.
   
   
2. Click Advanced System Settings.
   
   
3. Under "User Profiles", click Settings.
   
   
4. Select the profile you want to copy.
   
   
5. Click Copy to, and then enter the name of, or browse to, the profile you want to overwrite. This will usually be in C:\Users\username, where username is the name of the profile to which you are copying.
   
   
6. Click Permitted to use, and then add all user accounts to which you want to give full profile control. Click OK.

Windows XP

Note: The Windows XP default desktop view and Start menu are different from the Windows Classic View (e.g., in Windows 2000). Therefore, navigating to certain items can be different. In the interest of broad applicability, most Knowledge Base instructions assume you are using Classic View. For details about switching views, see In Windows XP, how do I switch to the Windows Classic View, Classic theme, or Classic Control Panel?

1. From the Start menu, select Settings, and then Control Panel. Double-click System.
   
   
2. Click the Advanced tab, and then, under "User Profiles", click Settings.
   
   
3. Click the profile you want to copy, and then click Copy to.
   
   
4. In the Copy To dialog box, click Browse to select the directory to which you want to copy the profile. This will usually be C:\winnt\profiles\username or C:\Documents and Settings\username, where username is the username of the profile to which you are copying. When you've selected the directory, click OK.
   
   
5. Under "Permitted to Use", click Change.
   
   
6. In the field labeled "Enter the object name to select:", enter the username of the user who needs to have rights to view this profile. Click Check Names to make sure that the user is found. If the user is not found, you may need to click Locations... to select the correct domain (or, if it is a local account, to select the computer name), and then click OK.
   
   
7. Click OK twice.
   
   
8. If you are prompted to continue, click Yes. Allow a minute for the system to copy the profile.
   
   
9. In the User Profiles window, click OK, and then click OK again in the System Properties window.

Windows 2000

1. From the Start menu, select Settings, and then Control Panel. Double-click System.
   
   
2. Select User Profiles, and then click the profile you want to copy. Click Copy to.
   
   
3. In the Copy To dialog box, click Browse to select the directory to which you want to copy the profile. This will usually be C:\winnt\profiles\username or C:\Documents and Settings\username, where username is the username of the profile to which you are copying. When you've selected the directory, click OK.
   
   
4. Click Change... , and then select the user who will have permission to use the profile. For example, DOM1\janedoe will allow user janedoe on domain DOM1 to have access to the profile.

   Note: There is a bug that affects this step on Windows 2000 clients on Windows NT 4.0-based domains. The Microsoft Help and Support web site describes this bug and gives a fix in article 257489.

   You can search Microsoft support at:

   http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx
5. Click OK three times.

Also see:

• In Windows, how do I add an application to the Start menu?