The .Default user is not the default user

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Deploying your VSTO Add-In to All Users (Part I)

Misha Shneerson — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 04:08:50 GMT

VSTO Add-Ins aka Managed Office Add-Ins have a major deficiency on the deployment side. Putting it simple,

re: The .Default user is not the default user

gripper — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 23:08:01 GMT

Actually,

Sysprep has its limits updating the Default user template.

Working with a huge OEM customer, I ran bug-a-boo issue where sysprep doesn't migrate all the owner settings to the default user template after reseal. Actually it was such a huge issue, my X-mas vacation was cut short and I flew out to Austin to investigate first hand.

This specifically effected a few Registry keyed Windows Installer components - the behavior was noted that after reseal and after OOBE, the MSI keyed registry components didn't exist, and an MSI repair was triggered.

This was fixed by creating an install action that directly updated the Default User template NTUSERS.DAT file.

So even sysprep seems to have its limits...

re: The .Default user is not the default user

KJK::Hyperion — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 19:37:51 GMT

.Default is named like that because it's the fallback key advapi32.dll uses for HKEY_CURRENT_USER when it cannot open the HKEY_USERS\<user's SID> key

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Igor — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 16:30:24 GMT

This is the way I use to customize user account during Windows install:

in $OEM$ folder make a file CMDLINES.TXT with the following:

---snip---

[COMMANDS]

"REGEDIT /S TWEAKUSR.REG"

"USERACCT.CMD"

---snip---

Obviously TWEAKUSR.REG should contain all user customizations.

USERACCT.CMD should also be in $OEM$ and contain the following:

---snip---

NET USER <your_username> <your_password> /ADD

NET LOCALGROUP Administrators <your_username> /ADD

---snip---

While you are at it, why not enable auto logon if you are doing it for the home computer? Create a file AUTOLOG.REG in $OEM$ folder with the following content:

---snip---

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

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

"DefaultUserName"="<your_username>"

"DefaultPassword"="<your_password>"

"AutoAdminLogon"="1"

---snip---

Then just add "REGEDIT /S AUTOLOG.REG" to CMDLINES.TXT.

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Tue, 06 Mar 2007 13:31:57 GMT

windows = single user os.

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Melvin — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 07:14:20 GMT

>The .Default account's wallpaper (and >screensaver) is used behind the login screen if >nobody has logged in to the computer. Most >companies use this, as they can set it to their >corporate logo (and an appropriate screensaver) >for computers that are just idling for whatever >reason.

And more helpfully when you've got a 16 port hot key KVM you can tell which server it's set to before initiating the logon process by incorporating the server name into the default wallpaper.

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Norman Diamond — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 06:06:18 GMT

Friday, March 02, 2007 11:03 AM by J

[Gary Williams:]

>> Is having a .DEFAULT profile something of a

>> security risk? could something be loaded

>> into .DEFAULT that runs whenever an

>> application runs as local system?"

> Don't you need admin rights to change

> HKEY_USERS? If that's the case, you can

> probably do something a little more malicious

> than changing a registry setting in .DEFAULT.

All true, but there are reasons why writers of some kinds of malware prefer to do things like loading their app in the local system account. If they install something like a spam server, they want it to be camouflaged so it will continue operating for a long time before being discovered.

Meanwhile, how many apps would break if the local system account's name were changed from .Default to .LocalSystem?

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Les Bowman — Mon, 05 Mar 2007 00:31:12 GMT

I just make my own custom registry modifications for the Default User template. I'll set the power settings, kill the welcome screen, check "Empty Internet Explorer Temp Files on close" and all sorts of other stuff. Export those keys to a .reg file, edit the .reg file and change the path in the registry key to something like HKU\DefUser save the .reg and then load the hive of the default user using the name I specified in the modified registry file, import the reg file and then unload the hive. You pretty much have to do this for images, other wise people will complain that the NumLock key isn't on or worse I can't delete old profiles remotely because the TempInet folders have path&file names too long to delete.

<a href="http://www.computerpowersaver.com/PM_Win2k_Whitepaper.pdf">This link</a> has a good overview of the process and is a good place to start. From there you've just got to find the registry keys for you edit. Keep in mind some things like the XP Tour/Firewall have to be turned off in the local group policy and with Win2K you have to load/unload hives in RegEdt32.

re: The .Default user is not the default user

Stephen Jones — Sat, 03 Mar 2007 22:37:00 GMT

----"than going into TweakUI, clicking Logon, then Settings."----

In my version of Tweak UI there is no settings button on the logon tab. Presumably you need to check you have the correct version of Tweak installed first. Gets more complicated by the minute!