Windows 7 why duplicate "users" folder in win7?

[davidbitn]

Hello

in windows7 there is "document and setting" and "users" folders.
they have the same contents and size. and they take up duplicate space.

can i delete one of the folders? how can i save capacity in HD?

my 'windows' folder growing all the time and now its 11gb size.
there is somting to do about it?

tnx
david.

 

[Mitchell_A]

Welcome to the Windows 7 Forums,

The "Documents and Settings" folder is traditionally from XP.
Back it up and then try deleting it's contents,

 

[davidbitn]

Welcome to the Windows 7 Forums,

The "Documents and Settings" folder is traditionally from XP.
Back it up and then try deleting it's contents,

thank you. it is safe to delete "Documents and Settings" folder? and stay with "users" folder?
why i need to back it up if all the data is storage in "user" folder?

thank you.

 

[Saltgrass]

Can you tell the full path of where the folder is located?

 

[Mitchell_A]

I would firstly try deleting the contents of it to make sure nothing goes wrong.
I suggested backing up incaase deleting the contents of one deleted the contents of both, though I suppose it would still be in the recycling bin.

 

[davidbitn]

Can you tell the full path of where the folder is located?

in drive c. im talking about the main folders: "users" and "document and setting" and not sub-folder or my personal named folder.

I would firstly try deleting the contents of it to make sure nothing goes wrong.
I suggested backing up incaase deleting the contents of one deleted the contents of both, though I suppose it would still be in the recycling bin.

i just want to understand something..."users" folder and "document and setting" folder are same and duplicate or not?
i sew in some website that "document and setting" folder just an shortcut to "users" folder...its true?
i still dont understand why microsft create two folders that are the same..so if i will delete "document and setting" folder nothing go wrong?

thank you.

 

[Mitchell_A]

Right click on each of the folders and select "Properties" and list the size of each folder.

 

[Trouble]

in drive c. im talking about the main folders: "users" and "document and setting" and not sub-folder or my personal named folder.



i just want to understand something..."users" folder and "document and setting" folder are same and duplicate or not?
i sew in some website that "document and setting" folder just an shortcut to "users" folder...its true?
i still dont understand why microsft create two folders that are the same..so if i will delete "document and setting" folder nothing go wrong?

thank you.

You are correct, the documents and settings folder is simply a collection of pointers for backwards compatibility. Read this it may help you understand better http://www.svrops.com/svrops/articles/jpoints.htm
As far as the size of your windows folder, take a look at the size of your C:\Windows\winsxs it will probably be nearly half of the overall size of the windows folder. Stands for Windows Side by Side, carried over from Vista. Don't mess with it. Google it.

 

[davidbitn]

trouble

thank you for great link on Junction Point . just one thing i didnt understand, the Junction Points take real capacity on HD or just shortcuts?

about winsxs, i know its like system32 in xp, and deleting it will be big isue

Mitchell Anthony
exectly the same size.

 

[Mitchell_A]

Well, you can try deleting the Documents and Settings folder then.
But be advised to back up your personal files incase something catches on fire

 

[Trouble]

For the sake of this discussion. I deleted the C:\Documents and Settings folder and rebooted my computer and guess what, the world didn't come to an end or anything else catastrophic. So I went into the recycle bin and restored them, then I turn on Don't show hidden files, folders, or drives and Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) so I don't have to look at them anymore. As I said they are just pointers, they contain no actual mass, yes if you like think of them like a short cut. They are there so older programs that actually refer to them in code, automatically have the proper syntax and path preserved.

 

[Tepid]

It might seem to be ok to delete the Documents and Settings folders. And that's fine if there are no problems presented.
But some software and installs may rely on it, due to improperly coded (hard coded) paths.

Just something to think about.

 

[RAK]

You cannot, under normal default, delete the "Documents and settings" folder. You can manipulate the privilges through the security settings, which will enable you to eventually perform the deletion. It would be VERY unwise to do this however. It will cause several problems on your installation. One will be interminable duplication of folders and files. You will also find problems with attempting to install legacy programs. If you have the normal "View" defaults set in Windows explorer, you should not even be able to see "Dcouments and settings"
Your question. Yes, unfortunately it does use real space. Withe the size of HD's today, this is not often a problem. I have mine unsecured, for personal test reasons, and can examine it. It takes about 1.7GBs. The majority of the folders and files in there are located now under "Users" - "username"