John,
In Haydon's command switches, /S makes RoboCopy include non-empty sub-folders and /E makes it include sub-folders even if they are empty.
Using both /S and /E is not necessary. /E will do.
Merry Christmas,
Denis
uh, see below - His script does not have /S or /E. And yet the log file does.
Folks, referring to my post #13, note that in my script I had neither /S nor /E
However, the header of the log file had both /S and /E
I noticed this, and to make sure, I copied both the script you had used and the logfile results. It was rather odd to see that /S and /E were there when you specifically did not specify them in the command in the first place.
I wonder if one of the *other* arguments used in the command is forcing /S and /E?
Folks, again referring to my post #13, note that in both script and log file I had /XA:HST which excludes Hidden files, System files, Temporary files.
Cool.
Did you mean to say that after installing your apps on a clean install of W11, you do not have to configure your apps just by copying \AppData from your old W10?
For a lot of apps, not *all* apps. For example:
\Users\{userid}\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\ contains all of the Chrome profiles you have on your system.
On a new install, I install Chrome for all users, and then let it open.
- I then close Chrome and make sure it is not running in the background (open Task Manager and
end any instance of Chrome.
- I then go to the same location
\Users\{userid}\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\ on the newly installed system and delete everything there.
- I then copy the old
\Users\{userid}\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\ to the new system.
- Presto - my Chrome now opens exactly like it did on the old system, no need to wait on synchronizing, for some tabs not to make it, etc. - it is *exactly* as you left it on the old system
This works with most browsers, you just have to know where each browser stores its profile information and such. Firefox is a bit special in that it usually has folders in both
AppData\Local\ *and*
\AppData\Roaming\. But, knowing this, it's easy to get browsers back up and running.
For other apps, it depends solely on the app. Having done this for many years now, I know which files and folders can and cannot be copied to a new system to make it work.
Take Microsoft Office, for example. The location for the settings and such is also split between
AppData\Local\ *and*
\AppData\Roaming\. However, some of thsoe subfolders can be copied over to retain settings, and some simply cannot. Also, most are in the subdirectory \Office\,
but not all - Outlook typically has its own folder in both, Teams, as well, etc. Knowing what can be copied and restored is a big part of making efficient use of the full \AppData copy. But I do not use scripts, as I make a full copy of all \AppData fodlers (with Windows complaining here that some files are not accessible) to a different drive, and then delete \Temp folders and the like. I then pick and choose what I copy to the new system, depending upon the apps I install - but that copy of \AppData is always there until I finish installing everything that I need.
When it comes time for a new clean install, I can repeat the process, but the older one is also still there in case I did not install an app from a previous install, but in the next clean install I do plan to do so.
This could be accomplished using a number of techniques - CopyPasta (lol), Backup program, scripting through RoboCopy / XCopy, TeraCopy and other file copier apps, and other ways. I stick to the copy and paste as I find it more efficient to copy just what I need at any given moment rather than copying everything in one fell swoop.
Also, come apps don't like it when you
pre-copystuff, and will simply delete it and start over anyway. So, with some apps installing the app first is required, then you remove the existing info and copy the new (old) info there. Firefox was notorious for this, and it's one of the reasons that I resorted to installing apps then copying settings data after installation.
In this respect, restoring data from image backups performs least well as when I want a truly clean install, an image restore is not going to be any cleaner than when it was made. And using Imaging software to do this becomes cumbersome, partially because of my own idiosyncrasies in having used my own method for so long now. But it can surely be done, so my take on it is purely subjective. And, for similar reasons, scripting is never going to satisfy me either as a copy and paste of the entire tree under AppData works perfectly fine with maybe about a 100 prompts that files are not available. But I don't see an easy script that will allow me to copy singular trees and only copy some subfolders in some cases, all subfolders in other cases. But the time I got something like that set up, with all of the prompts to configure it for every app, it just makes more sense to manually restore.
I am not sure, but because of the way the icons behave in W11 during the cut and paste operation, I'd like to think that W11 does not cut when the paste in the cut and paste operation is not successful.
Icons of what, exactly?
Of course, that hardly ever happens, but I have seen a guru or two have to disagree. Best to leave it lie if possible, though . . .
