121578 - Add help on user profiles

Status: RESOLVED DUPLICATE of bug 206096

(Documentation Graveyard :: Help Viewer, defect)

Description

[Hans Schleichert]

There is no documentation on the way mozilla stores user profiles. Where does
mozilla keep its list of available profiles? How can I make profiles
inaccessible to other users (in a multi user environment like WinNT)? How can I
use a profile across different PCs in a local network?

Comment 1

[benc]

Please look at:

http://www.packetgram.com/pktg/docs/nscp/ns6/briefprofiles.html

I would like to migrate this article to mozilla.org, and remove it from my site.

If this is useful, please copy it as an attachment into mozilla, and then we can
get contributors to update and modify the document for posting.

Comment 2

[Grace Bush]

there are also internal docs on Profiles- will be eager to post to a Mozilla 
site

Comment 3

[Hans Schleichert]

Benjamin, I read the doc you mentioned some time ago but by now it's gone from
the internet. However I don't think it explained how mozilla knows which
profiles it has. If there were a way to control access to profiles (maybe via
WinNT file access rights), one could restrict access to some profiles to single
users while grant access to a broader community for a special profile. Or I
could copy a profile from my home PC to the office PC if I knew how to.

Comment 4

[Daniel Wang]

Attachment: registry.dat doc?

needs review

Comment 5

[Daniel Wang]

Attachment: some profile info from Wishlist FAQ

Comment 6

[Daniel Wang]

and these:

/Profile data protection and encryption/
<http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/buglist.cgi?bug_id=16489,19184>

/Custom profile location/
<http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/buglist.cgi?bug_id=31763,150453,144712>

/Profile backup/
<http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/buglist.cgi?bug_id=22689,103993>

/Easy profile migration/
<http://bugzilla.mozilla.org/buglist.cgi?bug_id=7067,137006>

Comment 7

[Daniel Wang]

Attachment: Profile and Backup FAQ

Hello, some review please?

Comment 8

[Brant Gurganus]

Daniel, you don't mention the new Switch Profile option in the Tools menu.

Comment 9

[Daniel Wang]

Brant, the wishlist FAQ has been abandened by its previous owner (me)
and needs some TLC from a new owner.

Comment 10

[R.J. Keller]

Isn't this fixed?

Comment 11

[R.J. Keller]

Daniel: Answer my question or this bug is going to be WORKSFORME :). I see
profile help in the Help Viewer so not sure why this bug is still open.

Comment 12

[Daniel Wang]

RJ, there should be info on new profile options, for example, switching profiles
(Tools | Switch Profile...) without restarting and setting / unsetting the
option "don't ask at startup". There should also be a link: For more information
about profiles, including backup, read the Profile & Backup FAQ
<http://www.mozilla.org/start/1.4/faq/profile.html>

Comment 13

[R.J. Keller]

OK then, this bug is a little bit of bug 206096 and bug 221257 then. Seems more
like bug 206096 though.

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 206096 ***