User comments about offline files

re: User comments about offline files

ruudboek — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 14:45:52 GMT

Hi, could please confirm that my solution i correct?

We have have setup offline files in our network by configuring the appropriate GPO's.

Basically what it comes down to is that offline is configured by these policies:

Computer policy:

Configure slow-link mode > Enabled

UNC Paths: >

\\servername\home$ Latency=0

User policy:

Administratively assigned offline files > Enabled

Specify network files and folders that are always available offline:>

\\servername\home$\%username%

The problem:

When a user logs onto a freshly installed windows 7 SP1 workstation the sync partnership is present.

When that users logs off and then another user logs on, there is no sync partnership present for that other user.

When that other user goes to his home drive, that user is confronted with the following error:

H:\Refers to a location that does not exist.

A gpresult /r run under that other user shows that all the appropriate GPO's have been applied successfully.

I found out that the problem seems to deeper. It appears that if the first user logs on and simply sets its homedirectory offline, then logoff and login as another user, that other user Will not be able to get to his home directory (H:\Refers to a location that does not exist error).

If you then login as the first user again and simply switch it's homedirectory to online, then logoff and login as the other user the homedirectory of that user can be reached again.

Apparently offline files works like this: It takes the the whole \\servername\home$ and puts it offline as a whole, including every folder that is underneath the home$ share, which in our case, includes every homedirectory of every user.

This also made me solve the problem. If i simply make the home directory of each user a share and configure offline files to use \\servername\%username%$, there is no problem. Apparently only "\\server\share1" is treated as an independant item that allows it to be switched offline/online without causing another "\\server\share2" path to be switched to offline/online.

Can you please confirm that my finding are correct?

re: User comments about offline files

Marten Edwards — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 10:19:25 GMT

I have problems restoring unsynched offline files after a disk crasch. I have been able to restore the c:windows\csc files. Using XP Pro. I have downloaded rktools and in this way got csccmd.exe.

From another comment in this blog I have tried

mkdir c:\recoveredfiles\

csccmd /extract:\\myserver\myshare\ /target:c:\recoveredfiles\ /recurse /onlymodified

However, in the csccmd version I have obtained the only options are /ENABLE, /DISABLE, /RESID, /DISCONNECT, and /MOVESHARE. /Extract, /target, /recurse, and /onlymodified are not available (at least it seems so when typing csccmd /?.

So... apparently I am doing something wrong here. It would be great to get some clues of how to proceed.

Best regards / Marten

re: User comments about offline files

Manny — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 00:29:33 GMT

Hey...

I have a desktop with offline folders. When I am logged in as myself(with admin rights) and modify a file within offline folder, this modified file is not available under a different login (user has rights to this folder). It seems like any changes between the users are not synched while the pc is offline. Any idea on how can I make sure that the latest file is always available to all users of this PC?

Thanks for your time.

re: User comments about offline files

benny — Tue, 04 May 2010 21:19:41 GMT

Question; I have windows 7. I connect to shares on a windows server. i setup a folder in one of those shares to be made available to me offline... which works great. However when im physically connected to the network and i login and authenticate fine, if someone deletes files in the folder that i have set to be availble offline, those files still show in my explorer. They continue to show until i manually sync or reboot. Question is how do you make that happen in real time while im online?

thanks,

bsumandig@api.com

re: User comments about offline files

Gabriel — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 02:12:23 GMT

re: Wednesday, February 17, 2010 11:10 AM by Jane

this depends on the gpo settings defined.

if the offline files gpo setting "Subfolders always available offline" is enabled, users do not have the option of excluding the subfolders.

re: User comments about offline files

Jane — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 19:10:33 GMT

I'm using offline files in a networked environment. I have my documents folder on the server set to work offline. I'd like to turn off the work offline feature for some of the folders within the My documents folder; however, when I right click and want to uncheck work offline, that option is greyed out. Is there a way to change your offline settings so that you can reselect the folders or files you want to use offline. Whenever I disable and then re-enable the feature, the My Documents folder is automatically set up to sync. Thanks.

Jane

re: User comments about offline files

Justin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:13:59 GMT

Hello all. I have a question for the group.

In the next few weeks, a new server share will be put in place for user personal files that are redirected to them on their local machine. Some of our users have offline files. I understand that csccmd.exe is a tool that can be used on the local machine to connect the offline files database to move the share location, but I was wondering if there was anything that could be done server side?

Thanks for any help.

re: User comments about offline files

Tobias — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:45:45 GMT

Hi I have Vista business installed on my HP laptop SP2

Connected to SBS 2003, my Hp laptop I can mak available offline.And the always available offline is there

But howerever

On my Acer Laptop Vista business is installed the same setup as above but i cant make it available offline, and the always available offline option is not there.

I see previously posted on your website about this issue, i dont see anybody coming up with a resolution to this, is there a fix?

Please Help

re: User comments about offline files

Jonathan Hardwick — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 08:11:03 GMT

A user's emailed solution to an earlier problem:

"This fixes the mysterious disabled "offline files issue" of years ago.

Error message "A recently installed program has disabled the Welcome screen and Fast User Switching" while turning on the Welcome Screen

Updated: June 26, 2005

Send your feedback

Symptom

When you attempt to turn on Fast User Switching or Welcome Screen, you may receive a message stating that a program used CSGina.dll ( or any other DLL ginamsi.dll etc ) to disable the Fast User Switching and the Windows Welcome screen features. The exact error message follows:

A recently installed program has disabled the Welcome screen and Fast User Switching. To restore these features, you must uninstall the program. The following file name might help you identify the program that made the change: <DLL filename varies>

Cause

This issue occurs if a third-party GinaDLL value is set in the registry, thus disabing the Microsoft Graphical Identification and Authentication file (Msgina.dll) automatically. CSGINA.DLL is a filter driver of Cisco Systems VPN Dialer program. The filename may vary depending upon the software that you've installed.

Resolution

To resolve the problem and restore the Welcome Screen and Fast User Switching, you need to reset the GinaDLL entry using these steps:

Click Start, Run and type REGEDIT

Navigate to the following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon

Backup the key by exporting to a file.

In the right pane, right-click GinaDLL, and then click Delete. (You need to remove the whole value, not just its Value Data) Close Registry Editor Automate the above steps with this REG file Download ginadll.reg and save to desktop. Double-click to apply the REG file."

re: User comments about offline files

wblitz — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 16:46:54 GMT

If this is a problem, you may want to disable auto-caching on shares hosting these redirected shell special folders, for example “My Pictures”, “My Music”, and “My Videos”.

can you explain how to do so ?