WinProfileOps

The WinProfileOps module provides a robust toolkit for managing Windows user profiles on both local and remote computers. This module simplifies and automates complex profile management tasks, such as detecting orphaned profiles, validating profile paths, and identifying stale or corrupted profiles. It handles both filesystem and registry operations, utilizing the WinRegOps module for registry-related functions.

WinProfileOps seamlessly integrates with WinRegOps to manage profiles by querying, validating, and auditing user profile-related data from the Windows registry. This module is ideal for system administrators who want to streamline profile management operations, especially in environments with numerous users and computers.

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Dependencies

• WinRegOps: The WinProfileOps module depends on WinRegOps for registry operations such as querying, opening, and modifying registry keys related to user profiles.

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Key Features

• Retrieve user profile information from both the registry and the file system (local and remote).

• Detect orphaned profiles, such as profiles missing from the file system or registry.

• Filter and exclude special accounts like system or service accounts (e.g., defaultuser0, S-1-5-18).

• Remote profile management with support for handling user profiles across different systems.

• Error handling for permission issues, unreachable systems, and missing data.

• Class-based profile objects for easy integration with other automation tasks or scripts.

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Typical Use Cases

• Cleaning up orphaned profiles after system migrations, user deactivations, or profile corruption.

• Managing user profiles in large-scale environments, such as terminal servers, Citrix environments, or multi-user systems.

• Excluding system accounts from profile cleanup operations to prevent accidental deletion of important system profiles.

• System maintenance routines that include profile validation and management as part of a broader system health check.

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Installation

You have two options to install WinProfileOps:

1. Install from PowerShell Gallery
   You can install the module directly from the PowerShell Gallery using the Install-Module command:

   Install-Module -Name WinProfileOps

2. Install from GitHub Releases
   You can also download the latest release from the GitHub Releases page. Download the .zip file, extract it, and place it in one of your $PSModulePath directories.

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Usage

Example 1: Detecting Orphaned Profiles

Use the Get-OrphanedProfiles function to detect orphaned profiles on a local or remote machine:

$orphanedProfiles = Get-OrphanedProfiles -ComputerName "RemotePC" -IgnoreSpecial

This retrieves all orphaned profiles on RemotePC, excluding special accounts.

Example 2: Retrieving User Profiles from the File System

Use the Get-UserProfilesFromFolders function to retrieve user profile folders from the file system on a local or remote machine:

$userFolders = Get-UserProfilesFromFolders -ComputerName "Server01"

This retrieves user profile folders from the default C:\Users directory on Server01.

Example 3: Retrieving User Profiles from the Registry

Use the Get-UserProfilesFromRegistry function to query user profiles from the Windows registry:

$registryProfiles = Get-UserProfilesFromRegistry -ComputerName "LocalHost"

This retrieves user profiles from the registry on LocalHost.

Example 4: Auditing User Profiles

Use the Invoke-UserProfileAudit function to audit profiles across the file system and registry:

$allProfiles = Invoke-UserProfileAudit -ComputerName "Server01"

This audits user profiles on Server01, returning both file system and registry profile information.

Example 5: Removing User Profiles from the Registry

Use the Remove-UserProfilesFromRegistry function to remove user profiles from the Windows registry based on SIDs, Usernames, or UserProfile objects:

• Remove profiles by SIDs:

  Remove-UserProfilesFromRegistry -SIDs "S-1-5-21-1234567890-1", "S-1-5-21-1234567890-2"

• Remove profiles by usernames on a remote computer:

  Remove-UserProfilesFromRegistry -Usernames "john.doe", "jane.smith"
  -ComputerName "Server01" -Force -Confirm:$false

• Audit user profiles before removal:

  Remove-UserProfilesFromRegistry -UserProfiles $userProfileList -AuditOnly

Note: To bypass any confirmation prompts during profile removal, both the -Force switch and -Confirm:$false must be specified.

This allows you to either remove or audit profiles based on their SIDs, usernames, or UserProfile objects.

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Key Functions

• Get-OrphanedProfiles: Detects orphaned profiles by checking both the registry and file system.
• Invoke-UserProfileAudit: Audits and compares profiles from both the registry and file system, identifying discrepancies such as orphaned profiles.
• Get-UserProfilesFromRegistry: Retrieves user profiles from the Windows registry.
• Get-UserProfilesFromFolders: Retrieves user profile folders from the file system.
• Remove-UserProfilesFromRegistry: Removes user profiles from the Windows registry based on SIDs, Usernames, or UserProfile objects, with options for audit-only mode or forced removal.

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Environment Variables

The WinProfileOps module uses several environment variables to configure certain default paths and behaviors. These variables are automatically set when the module is loaded and can be adjusted as needed:

• $env:WinProfileOps_IsAdmin: Determines if the current user has administrative privileges. It is determined by the current context of the user.

• $env:WinProfileOps_RegistryPath: Specifies the registry path used for managing user profiles. Default value: "SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList".

• $env:WinProfileOps_RegistryHive: Defines the registry hive used in operations, set to LocalMachine by default.

• $env:WinProfileOps_RegBackUpDirectory: Specifies the directory where registry backups are stored. Default value: "C:\LHStuff\RegBackUp".

• $env:WinProfileOps_ProfileFolderPath: The profile folder path, defaulting to "C:\Users", but can be customized based on the system's configuration.

These variables are set automatically when the module is imported and are cleared when the module is unloaded or the PowerShell session ends.