Roaming Computing System (Windows Edition) 3.0
Create a User Account
Estimated time to complete: 30 minutes.
Contents
- Create Samba Account - on the Server
- Create an Email Account - on the Server
- Create Windows Profile and Configure - on the Workstation
Estimated time to complete: 30 mins.
Create Samba Account - on the Server
Login to the server as the user root (using Putty from a Windows workstation or the command-line from a Linux workstation).
Create a Samba account for the new user (you'll be prompted for the Samba root password):
net rpc user add <username> -S server
Set a password for their Samba account (you'll be prompted for the Samba root password):
net rpc password <username> "<password>"
Enable their Samba account:
smbpasswd -e <username>
Create their Windows profile directory and make them the owner:
mkdir /home/samba/profiles/<username>
chown <username> /home/samba/profiles/<username>
Optional Permissions
For access to shared files (S:) add them to the organisation's group (otherwise they only have H:):
adduser <username> <organisation>-staff
If you want them to be a member of any sub-groups:
adduser <username> <sub-group>
If you want them to be a print administrator:
adduser <username> lpadmin
Create an Email Account - on the Server
If they're to have a dedicated mailbox, it could be either in their own name (as per your organisation's naming convention), or the name of the role they're performing.
Create the mailbox (you'll be asked for the MySQL root user password):
mysql -u root -p -D provider \
--exec="INSERT INTO users VALUES('<mailbox name>@<domain
name>','<password>')"
If any forwardings / aliases are required, local or remote, create them (you'll be asked for
the MySQL root user password; to forward to multiple addresses separate them with a comma):
mysql -u root -p -D provider \
--exec="INSERT INTO forwardings (source, destination) VALUES \
('<alias>@<domain name>','<mailbox name>@<domain name>')"
Send the new user an email to initialise their mailbox:
echo -e "Welcome to your new email account.\r\nEverything should be working, let us know if it
isn't." | mail -s "Welcome" <mailbox name>@<domain name>
Create Windows Profile and Configure - on the Workstation
Logon to the workstation with the new account. Windows automatically creates a profile on the workstation, which it will then copy to the server when you logout.
Shortcuts and Icons
TWEAK: D → E (the shortcuts.ini this can use can be organisation-specific so you may want to use a customised version of TWEAK for this)
Windows Configuration
TWEAK: A →
- L
Logoff and logon again for some of these settings to take effect.
TWEAK: A →
- N
- R
- W →
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 7
- P → P
Logoff and logon again for some of these settings to take effect.
Software Application Configuration
Applications and Utilities
Core RCS Applications
Adobe Reader
TWEAK: B → A → C
Irfanview
TWEAK: B → I → G
OpenOffice
TWEAK: B → O2 →
- Either
- H - default to saving files in OpenOffice / OpenDocument file format
- I - default to saving files in Microsoft Office file format
- L
Firefox
- Start Firefox then close it
- Go to the Firefox profile directory %APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<this user's profile name>.default
- Edit user.js
- Remove the comments (//;) from the two user_pref lines
- Change 'PUT_USER_TEMP_LOCATION_HERE' to 'D:\\<username>' (where you change '<username>' for the actual username of this user)
Thunderbird
If they are to have access to a mailbox, add their mail account and/or any others they wish to use:
- Run Thunderbird, you'll be prompted to setup a new account
- Choose 'Email account'
- Your Name: whatever you want mail to appear from
- Email Address: your full email address
- Select 'IMAP'
- Incoming Server: server
- Outgoing Server: server (you'll only be asked this for the first account you setup and it will henceforth be known by this name)
- Incoming user name: your full email address
- When you first use the mailbox you'll be asked for your password, you should choose to have it remembered.
- Send an email to another Internet site. When you first send an email you'll be
- Asked if you want to setup Enigmail - say 'No', Enigmail will be explained later
- For the outgoing mail password - enter your mail password again and choose to have it remembered
Add any additional mailboxes you want to use in the same way.
If you mistakenly save a wrong password in Thunderbird you can remove the saved password using Tools → Options → Privacy → Passwords → Edit Saved Passwords.
Major Proprietary Applications
Quickbooks
Pickup the Company File from S:
Microsoft Office 97
Elevate the user's priviliges temporarily:
net rpc group addmem "Domain Admins" <username> -U winadmin
Run the installer to configure it for both the user and for the workstation
- on the server P:\MSOffice\Setup.exe
- Enter the product key
- Choose 'Run from network server'
- The installer gives error messages about not all network resources being available
- Windows XP additionally has the error message: "HTMLMARQ.OCX was unable to register itself in the system registry" and then says the setup was not completed successfully. In this case you can only run Microsoft Office 97 direct from P:.
Remove temporary permissions elevation:
net rpc group delmem "Domain Admins" <username> -U winadmin
Drivers and Runtime Environments
Sun Java Runtime Environment (JRE)
TWEAK: B → J → M
Printing
If you print through a print server - connect to any appropriate printers by navigating to the print
server using Windows Explorer, i.e. \\server, right-click on the printer name and choose
'Connect'.
If you print direct - the printer driver as configured by the administrator for the workstation will be already available and configured for this user.
Saving The Windows Profile
Logout from the workstation. The newly configured user profile should be copied back to the server. Be careful, if the profile fails to copy to the server and you logon to a different workstation your changes will be lost. So keep a lookout for any messages such as "unable to save roaming profile", in which case you should log back in and out again.
Migration
If you're migrating from another system you may want to migrate these for the person:
- Home directory files
- Email Address books and distribution lists
- Browser bookmarks
- Browser saved passwords