The system stores user profile information in the Profiles directory. This directory is typically a subdirectory of the Microsoft Windows NT/Microsoft Windows 2000/Windows XP root directory. To obtain the path of the Profiles directory, use the
GetProfilesDirectory function.
Each user has a profile stored in the Profiles directory. The Profiles directory contains the following subdirectories for user profiles.
| Directory | Description |
|---|
| All Users | Profile information that applies to all users. |
| Default User | Profile information that applies to the default user. |
| User | Profile information that applies to the specified user. |
To obtain the location of the All Users directory, call the
GetAllUsersProfileDirectory function. This directory contains the following subdirectories:
| Directory | Description |
|---|
| Desktop | Shortcuts to display on the desktop. |
| Start Menu | Menu items for the Start menu. |
To obtain the location of the Default Users directory, call the
GetDefaultUserProfileDirectory function. To obtain the location of a particular user's directory, call the GetUserProfileDirectory function. These directories contain the following subdirectories. Directories in italics indicate directories that are hidden by default. You can view these directories by selecting Folder Options on the Tools menu and then changing the option on the View tab.
| Directory | Description |
|---|
| Application Data | Application-specific data. |
| Desktop | Shortcuts to display on the desktop. |
| Cookies | Windows Internet Explorer cookies. |
| Local Settings | Application settings and data that do not roam with the profile. Usually the settings or data in this directory are computer-specific, or they are too large to roam effectively. This directory contains the following subfolders:
- Application Data
- History
- Temp
- Temporary Internet Files
|
| Favorites | Links to favorite Web sites. |
| My Documents | The default location for documents that the user creates. Applications should save document files to this directory by default. This directory is called Personal on computers running Windows NT. |
| NetHood | Shortcuts to Network Neighborhood items. |
| PrintHood | Shortcuts to printer folder items. |
| Recent | Shortcuts to the most recently used documents. |
| SendTo | Shortcuts to locations to which the user often sends files. |
| Start Menu | Menu items for the Start menu. |
| Templates | Shortcuts to template items. |
To obtain the location of subdirectories of these directories, use the
SHGetFolderPath or SHGetKnownFolderPath functions.