Ubuntu
wine package

Move the profiles directory

Bug #162031 reported by Fred
8
Affects Status Importance Assigned to Milestone
Wine
Fix Released
Wishlist
wine (Ubuntu)
Fix Released
Wishlist
Unassigned

Bug Description

Binary package hint: wine

Move the users profile directory from C:\Windows\Profiles\ to C:\Documents and Settings\ or C:\Users\

C:\Windows\Profile is old legacy location for crappy legacy Windows 95.

In 2000 and XP it is in C:\Documents and Settings\
In Vista it is in C:\Users\

So please move it.

Revision history for this message
Greg Grossmeier (greg.grossmeier) wrote :

Is there a technical reason to move the directory? Do things not work that should? Why should it be moved other than to mimic newer behavior in Windows?

Changed in wine:
status: New → Incomplete
Revision history for this message
Fred (eldmannen+launchpad) wrote :

Because Wine does mimic Windows, so it should mimic the behavior of Windows.

And it is better if Wine mimics the behavior of a new Windows (such as 2000, XP or Vista), instead of mimicking an old legacy version of Windows (such as 95).

Maybe there is no purely technical reason, since applications should use the %USERPROFILE% environment variable anyways. But having the directory in same place as in recent versions of Windows, makes it easier for users to find it.
The only pseudo-technical reason is that it would increase compatibility with programs by crappy developers who used hardcoded paths instead of environment variables.

I tried to find it, and didn't find it at first, then I found it under the Windows directory after a while. It was not where I expected it to be.

Wine identifies itself as Windows 2000 (last, I heard), so it should put the files where Windows 2000 does too, not 95, because Wine does not identify was Windows 95.
Microsoft didn't move the profile directory for no reason, they had a reason todo it. Windows 2000 is far superior to Windows 95 which is a crap system that never was any good.

Greg Grossmeier (greg.grossmeier)
Changed in wine:
importance: Undecided → Wishlist
status: Incomplete → Confirmed
Revision history for this message
Scott Ritchie (scottritchie) wrote :

Wine defaults to XP now.

There are a couple possible issues - on the one hand we have stupid apps hardcoding where they write, though on the other hand we might have stupid apps hardcoding how they detect Windows by looking for where the profile folder is.

Perhaps the best situation is a symlink while having the directory in both places. Either way, this can be done upstream.

Revision history for this message
furicle (furicle) wrote :

FWIW, I just linked c:\windows\profiles to c:\documents and settings and got rid of some error messages in an app I just installed. I'm no Wine expert, but this helped me and I can't see how it would hurt?

Revision history for this message
In , Scott Ritchie (scottritchie) wrote :

From Launchpad: https://bugs.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/wine/+bug/162031

Move the users profile directory from C:\Windows\Profiles\ to C:\Documents and Settings\ or C:\Users\

C:\Windows\Profile is old legacy location for crappy legacy Windows 95.

In 2000 and XP it is in C:\Documents and Settings\
In Vista it is in C:\Users\

We should consider moving it and providing symlinks in all the old places, especially when we are in "Vista mode". One possible worry is that if we provide just normal symlinks, an old app might be confused by looking in all 3 folders.

Revision history for this message
In , Detlef (winspool) wrote :

%windir%\Profiles is the location on NT4

The Profile - location in W2K / XP has a big disadvantage:
- It's localized.

Using C:\Users\ has other advantages:
- it's a short name
- The Path can never have a space

--
By by ... Detlef

Revision history for this message
In , Lei Zhang (thestig-google) wrote :

+1. Picasa for instance, avoid scanning c:\windows because users don't store anything there.

Bug Watch Updater (bug-watch-updater)
Changed in wine:
status: Unknown → Confirmed
Revision history for this message
In , Austin English (austinenglish) wrote :

This was fixed a long time ago.

Bug Watch Updater (bug-watch-updater)
Changed in wine:
status: Confirmed → Fix Released
Revision history for this message
Greg Grossmeier (greg.grossmeier) wrote :

This appears to be fixed upstream, and with the comment:
"This was fixed a long time ago."

Can someone who uses Wine and knows this issue confirm that the fix has made it to Ubuntu?

Thanks.

Revision history for this message
Scott Ritchie (scottritchie) wrote :

"A long time ago" probably means in a Wine beta release after 1.0, and will thus get into Ubuntu when Wine 1.2 makes its way in (probably karmic)

Changed in wine (Ubuntu):
status: Confirmed → Fix Committed
Revision history for this message
Fred (eldmannen+launchpad) wrote :

Yes, this is fixed upstreams.
I am running Wine 1.1.21, and it has been moved to from Windows\Profiles\ to Users\

:)

Revision history for this message
In , Alexandre Julliard (julliard) wrote :

Closing bugs fixed in 1.1.22.

Przemek K. (azrael)
Changed in wine (Ubuntu):
status: Fix Committed → Fix Released
Bug Watch Updater (bug-watch-updater)
Changed in wine:
importance: Unknown → Wishlist
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