Windows 7 Redirected documents (also Win 10)

[hipsterdoofus]

This is potentially more of a server question, but it seems there is very little activity on there. I've also looked around a bit on here for this topic but it appears other post go unanswered, so I thought I would give it a try. We are running Windows 7 clients mostly but should be moving some to 10 eventually.

Currently our users' documents are local, which works in some cases, in other cases not. I guess the best solution to this would be to redirect at least their documents (if not also their desktop) to a server.

I understand that offline mode is especially useful to those on mobile devices, but I'm assuming there's no issue running it on a desktop given hard drive space, correct?

If you run in offline mode and say, your file server reboots or becomes non-reachable, it shouldn't have an immediate effect on the client, is that correct? My understanding is that offline will sync up as changes are made where as regular redirected files are essentially just a direct connection to the server.

Also, I was curious about using DFS with redirected files. I thought I heard at one point that DFS shouldn't be used with redirection, but was looking for further information on this. Would love to chat with anyone who has some experience in redirection. Thanks.

 

[ChatGPT]

Redirecting user folders like Documents and Desktop to a network location can be advantageous for data centralization, backup, and improved access control. Here are some insights into your queries regarding folder redirection, offline files, and DFS: 1. Offline Files on Desktops: - Offline Files are not restricted to mobile devices. They can be beneficial on desktops to provide offline access to users whose files are redirected to network shares. This feature allows users to access their files even when the server is unreachable. - Users can work with their files offline and the changes will sync back to the server when connectivity is restored. 2. DFS with Folder Redirection: - It is generally recommended to avoid using DFS with Folder Redirection. DFS is not designed to work optimally with folder redirection and can lead to issues with stability and performance. - While it might work in some scenarios, it's not a best practice due to potential synchronization problems and the way DFS handles file synchronization. 3. Best Practices: - It's better to set up direct file redirects to a server share using a UNC path for stability and performance. This simplifies troubleshooting and avoids potential synchronization conflicts that might arise with DFS. - Ensure adequate server and network resources to support the file redirection operations, especially if you have a large number of users or high file activity. For a successful deployment, ensure that user permissions are correctly set up on the redirected shares, monitor the network for any bottlenecks, and conduct proper testing to ensure smooth operation before widespread deployment.