Windows 10: ? After I Moved Libraries ie. Documents, Pictures and Download Folders

Guys, from reading this I am wondering..... is it possible that he just doesn't understand what is happening and how this works? I notice he says all his user files are missing from C:\Users and are on the D Drive, but when he saves something it saves them in both places. (I was not aware that is even possible) I am just wondering if in file explorer, for example, when he clicks documents and finds his documents, he thinks that means they are on the C drive.

If all his user folders are not in C:\Users, where is all of the data he thinks is still on C ?

 

What he thought were Folders on C:\ were his "Libraries" in the Explorer LH Pane ( ie just shortcuts to D:\ after the move of library locations)

He moved his Libraries to D: ( a HDD) to get them off his 256GB SSD.....

At least that is my understanding so far......

KB.

 

I understand what he did. What I am saying is because in the left pane he clicks his libraries and they open, he thinks that means they are on C when they are not on C, they are on D. He doesn't understand that the Libraries are just a shortcut to D.

If the Library folders are missing from his users, where could they be on C? They can't be there.

 

>I am confused then ??? ...cos nothing should be empty on D:\

You cloned the SSD Drive (c*Smile to the HDD (d*Smile so everything should be in D:\Users\\Docs (or Pics or Music etc)

Sorry, I guess I could have been more clear. After successfully "dual booting" I booted into D and you are right since the image replicated everything on the SSD there were in fact items in the Docs, Downloads and Pic folders but since I knew that I was going to move the SSD folders to the D drive I deleted everything in the D Users MYNAME folders. So the doc folders etc on the D drive are now empty, And from my above posts all of the info from the SSD folders now reside on the D drive in the folder that I created called "C SSD" which now houses the contents from the SSD ie the contents in the SSD docs, pics and downloads folders.

So from now on when I boot up the D drive and I find myself for whatever reason working from that drive should I download something for example it will be saved to the D user downloads folder which is currently empty.

Did I explain that or just muddle things?

>AND since you also moved the Libraries off the SSD (C: Drive) to D:\C_SSD\Docs (etc) they should also ALL be in there too

Yup. They are there just where I want them in C SSD folder.

>ie taking up twice as much space.

So it is not really taking up 2x the space since the D folders are empty (only the C SSD folder has items in it.) The only space that I perhaps have been cavalier about was installing a 2nd OS on the 500GB HDD which took up about 50GB or so. I should also point out while I have an abundance of external storage my 7 yr. old laptop had only a 250GB hard drive and you guessed it I dual booted that with two identical win 7 partitions which over the course of 7 years now no longer look at all alike and mostly as I plan to do with this new computer one of the partitions that I can boot from on the old notebook I maybe boot into it once every couple of months. It is there for emergencies and troubleshooting. So with the new computer I have a total of 750GB of hard drive space and for the time being I am not at all concerned with saving space and having the comfort of not only having image backups but immediately being able to boot from another internal hard drive should the SSD go sideways lets me sleep at night : )

 

>essenbeI understand what he did. What I am saying is because in the left pane he clicks his libraries and they open, he thinks that means they are on C when they are not on C, they are on D. He doesn't understand that the Libraries are just a shortcut to D.

Yeah. It took me a while to figure that one out : )

 

So, everything is as it should be? Your Libraries are working correctly on the D Drive? Or do you still think they are on C Drive as well as D?

 

>So, everything is as it should be?

Yes. When I boot into D the libraries are empty because after I wrote the SSD image to the D drive so I could dual boot I deleted the contents of the libraries on the D drive since the contents from the SSD docs, pics etc folders now reside in the D drive in the folder C SSD.

>Your Libraries are working correctly on the D Drive?

Yes. As mentioned they are empty however when and if I choose to boot into D and have an occasion to save a doc or to download something it will be downloaded to the currently empty folders completely separate from the C SSD folders which house the info that were previously on the C drive.

>Or do you still think they are on C Drive as well as D?

No, as I mentioned while it took me awhile to grasp the difference between the Library folders and the folders of the same name in the User->MYNAME etc. folders everything appears to be setup now the way I want it that is until MS forces an update on me and breaks everything : ) however I do have some leeway since I have deferred the fall creators 1709 update for 365 days though I suspect I will install it within the next few months. Thanks for your help.

 

Okay now I understand what you did .............

If you boot off the HDD in the future , it will become C:\ so as long as you did not move the locations of the Libraries in that OS too then it will save files to the Original Libraries Locations.... ie C:\Users\phaedruspress\Docs etc etc

However your new Libraries in D:\C_SSD\ would then become C:\C_SSD\ etc etc if booting the HDD, so you would either need to add those new locations to the Libraries "View" OR once booted to the HDD move the libraries locations to the C_SSD Folders ( now on C remember) so you see them normally from the Libraries in the LH Explorer Pane.

I would recommend reading these short Tutorials 1st :

Set Save Location for Library in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials

Include Folder to Library in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials

Move Libraries Above This PC in Navigation Pane in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials


KB.

 

>Okay now I understand what you did .............

Thanks for the patience : )

>If you boot off the HDD in the future , it will become C:\ so as long as you did not move the locations of the Libraries in that OS too then it will save files to the Original Libraries Locations.... ie C:\Users\\Docs etc etc

Exactly.

>However your new Libraries in D:\C_SSD\ would then become C:\C_SSD\ etc etc if booting the HDD, so you would either need to add those new locations to the Libraries "View" OR once booted to the HDD move the libraries locations to the C_SSD Folders ( now on C remember) so you see them normally from the Libraries in the LH Explorer Pane.

You know I am not quite sure I follow. When I boot into the HDD if I want to access the files that were formerly on the SSD that are now in the folder D:/C SSD their address when I am on D is still D:/C SSD. I don't need to see the C SSD folder in the Libraries when I am on D. If I want to access them I just open the C SSD folder. Right now they are just sitting there (when I boot into D) This PC -> Windows ->C SSD. I believe I accomplished what I wanted to (with lots of help, of course) but then again I am probably just not understanding what you wrote above.

 

*Smile

If you Boot the HDD it will be C Drive..... the Boot Drive is ALWAYS C no matter what , at least I have never seen otherwise but then you are using a BIOS Dual Boot not a traditional Dual-boot so I don't know if it somehow handles it differently?....... but AFAIK the Bootable/Active Drive was always C ie if you did it right now the Drive Letters would just simply reverse since both Drives are Valid and operational....this is what happens on my Win10/XP Dualboot , In each OS I set the other OS drive letter to X though (DVDs are Y and Z) so as not to accidentally access the incorrect OS's files and let flash drives and Externals appear down at E,F,G etc. in File Explorer

If you are on D: ie you boot the HDD... it is now C: ...... assuming I am correct above ......

so your current Libraries at D:\C_SSD\ would then be at C:\C_SSD\ not D:\C_SSD\ ie assume for example the SSD did die and thus there would be no D Drive even showing....

If you do what i said above you can access those Libraries as Normal ...ie no need to access the C_SSD Folder to find them , they just appear as normal in the LH Pane of File Explorer Under your Libraries, as that OS thinks those Folders are your Libraries for that OS.

Damn you are making me think way too hard for a Friday night *Smile

KB.

 

What @Kbird says is correct. I have 4 operating systems which are not dual boots, each is on a different hard drive. I select which OS by using the one time boot menu key. I am not offered the selection on a normal boot. No matter which OS on any drive I boot into it is always the C drive. If it isn't something is wrong.

He is also correct about your C_SSD folder. When that hard drive becomes the C drive, everything on that drive is C:/. The only way to stop that would be to create a partition with a different drive letter for your C_SSD files. Then they should always be the same drive letter.

 

>If you Boot the HDD it will be C Drive..... the Boot Drive is ALWAYS C no matter what

Right. I was once again confused when I read your post and commented that I was unable to follow.

>so your current Libraries at D:\C_SSD\ would then be at C:\C_SSD\

Yup. And by current you mean the ones that I put there from the SSD, right?

>If you do what i said above you can access those Libraries as Normal ...ie no need to access the C_SSD Folder to find them , they just appear as normal in the LH Pane of File Explorer Under your Libraries, as that OS thinks those Folders are your Libraries for that OS.

This is what I see. If I want to access the folders from the SSD that now reside on the HDD I need to open up "C" and click on the C SSD folder. If you are saying that I can put the C SSD folder in the Library section on the D drive now the C drive since I have booted into it I understand and believe I know how to do that but for the time being I do not believe I want it there. No logical reason but everything is "working" and set up like I wanted so I'm good : )

>Damn you are making me think way too hard for a Friday night

What about me. All I seem to do is confuse myself!

 

phaedruspress Said:

>If you Boot the HDD it will be C Drive..... the Boot Drive is ALWAYS C no matter what

Right. I was once again confused when I read your post and commented that I was unable to follow.

Yep , you got it now

>so your current Libraries at D:\C_SSD\ would then be at C:\C_SSD\

Yup. And by current you mean the ones that I put there from the SSD, right?

Yep , you got it now

>If you do what i said above you can access those Libraries as Normal ...ie no need to access the C_SSD Folder to find them , they just appear as normal in the LH Pane of File Explorer Under your Libraries, as that OS thinks those Folders are your Libraries for that OS.

This is what I see. If I want to access the folders from the SSD that now reside on the HDD I need to open up "C" and click on the C SSD folder.

YES,assuming you have booted to the HDD

If you are saying that I can put the C SSD folder in the Library section on the D drive now the C drive since I have booted into it I understand and believe I know how to do that but for the time being I do not believe I want it there. No logical reason but everything is "working" and set up like I wanted so I'm good : )

NO ! at least I think no *Smile , I meant while you are booted to the HDD if you move your Folder Locations in that OS to the new C_SSD Folders you made too, you will then "see" the same Docs , Pics, Videos etc in Both OS's and those files will always be the most current no matter which OS you Boot.

>Damn you are making me think way too hard for a Friday night

What about me. All I seem to do is confuse myself!

So you are booted to the 500GB HDD in the Pic Correct? this is why I Label the Drives (on Properties Tab) with Names like 250GB_SSD and 500GB_HDD = no confusion at a quick glance and make the non-booted OS X: Drive instead.....

Attachment 171376









[/QUOTE]

 

>>>If you do what i said above you can access those Libraries as Normal ...ie no need to access the C_SSD Folder to find them , they just appear as normal in the LH Pane of File Explorer Under your Libraries, as that OS thinks those Folders are your Libraries for that OS.

>>This is what I see. If I want to access the folders from the SSD that now reside on the HDD I need to open up "C" and click on the C SSD folder.

>YES,assuming you have booted to the HDD

Yes. The snap was taken after I booted into "D," the HDD now "C" : )

>>If you are saying that I can put the C SSD folder in the Library section on the D drive now the C drive since I have booted into it I understand and believe I know how to do that but for the time being I do not believe I want it there. No logical reason but everything is "working" and set up like I wanted so I'm good : )

>NO ! at least I think no *Smile , I meant while you are booted to the HDD if you move your Folder Locations in that OS to the new C_SSD Folders you made too, you will then "see" the same Docs , Pics, Videos etc in Both OS's and those files will always be the most current no matter which OS you Boot.

Yeah, Like I said I think for the time being I'm just going to leave everything as is since right now at least I have some sort of organizational method that I understand!

>So you are booted to the 500GB HDD in the Pic Correct? this is why I Label the Drives (on Properties Tab) with Names like 250GB_SSD and 500GB_HDD = no confusion at a quick glance and make the non-booted OS X: Drive instead.....

That's correct. I was on the 500GB HDD drive when I snapped that Pic. While your suggestion to change the drive letters might make more sense the drive letters C and D have become so ingrained over the years that I want to stick with what I know. I believe it was in this post or perhaps another I mentioned that I have been dual booting on my previous notebook for the last 7 years (at least in my mind I have been dual booting, 1 HDD 2 bootable partitions of win 7 home) and the drive letters "C" and "D" have been with me a long time. No one likes change : )

Thanks again for all of your help.

 

>If you are saying that I can put the C SSD folder in the Library section on the D drive now the C drive since I have booted into it I understand and believe I know how to do that but for the time being I do not believe I want it there. No logical reason but everything is "working" and set up like I wanted so I'm good : )

>>> You aren't actually moving anything doing this since the files are already in C_SSD , you are just adding that location's shortcut to the Library Window so you can access it from there. If you change the default "SAVE" location at the same time, then any new files made while booted to the HDD will also be saved in C_SSD. Of course if you are happy as it is ? it's all good *Smile but I would recommend reading these short Tutorials :

Set Save Location for Library in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials

Include Folder to Library in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials

Move Libraries Above This PC in Navigation Pane in Windows 10 Customization Tutorials




>>NO ! at least I think no *Smile , I meant while you are booted to the HDD if you move your Folder Locations in that OS to the new C_SSD Folders you made too, you will then "see" the same Docs , Pics, Videos etc in Both OS's and those files will always be the most current no matter which OS you Boot.

>>Yeah, Like I said I think for the time being I'm just going to leave everything as is since right now at least I have some sort of organizational method that I understand!

>So you are booted to the 500GB HDD in the Pic Correct? this is why I Label the Drives (on Properties Tab) with Names like 250GB_SSD and 500GB_HDD = no confusion at a quick glance and make the non-booted OS X: Drive instead.....

>>That's correct. I was on the 500GB HDD drive when I snapped that Pic. While your suggestion to change the drive letters might make more sense the drive letters C and D have become so ingrained over the years that I want to stick with what I know. I believe it was in this post or perhaps another I mentioned that I have been dual booting on my previous notebook for the last 7 years (at least in my mind I have been dual booting, 1 HDD 2 bootable partitions of win 7 home) and the drive letters "C" and "D" have been with me a long time. No one likes change : )

Thanks again for all of your help.




[/QUOTE]