Solved A problem with Task Scheduler and user accounts


Fortitude

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Windows 11 Pro 22H2 OS Build 22621.675
I'm having a problem with Task Scheduler that I don't know how to solve.

I recently re-installed Windows from the beginning. The previous installation was erased and so were my programs which I re-installed in due course.

During the Windows installation Windows gave a default user name. After I finished the re-installation I renamed the Windows given user folder name to my preferred name according to the Tutorial found on ElevenForum. I also created another Administrator Local account for safety, but in practice I use the originally created Administrator Microsoft account and my user folder is the one that Microsoft created which I renamed.

I notice that in addition to my two user folders for the two accounts there is another user folder having the original Windows-given user name which is empty (except for a couple of empty folders inside it).

When I create a task in Task Scheduler it shows as Author <my computername>\<user> and the user name shown is the one given during the Windows re-installation. I'm expecting to see my Administrator account name.

What should I do to sort resolve this? Basically I want to have one Microsoft Administrator account, one Local Administrator and their respective user folders to have the names that I choose for each of them. When I create a task in Task Scheduler the Author should be my Microsoft Administrator.

EDIT: Looking closely, when I switched my Microsoft Account to a Local account, the Windows proposed user name was the one that was given during the installation of Windows. Maybe this could be a clue to someone.

EDIT 2: The change from my MSA to the Local account during which I changed the name offered by Windows appears to have solved the Task Scheduler issue with the Author. I'm still confused about the whole thing, but at least the problem is solved.
 
Windows Build/Version
Windows 11 Pro Build 22000.739
Last edited:

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System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 22H2 OS Build 22621.675
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 5482 2-in-1
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-8565U
    Memory
    8GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ
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    1Gbps/300Mbps (nominal)
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To get the user folder path name to the one you want to specify, you have to create the user account as a local one. You can then convert the desired one to an MSAccount-linked user account and it will continue to use the same user folder path.
Switch from Local to MSAccount - ElevenForumTutorials

There are tutorials about changing usernames and changing user folder paths that do not involve creating new accounts to replace the existing ones but I think they are less straightforward.

By the way, there is a difference in Task scheduler between Author and the use the following account entries.
- Author can be any old rubbish you want.
- The use the following account entry is important & it must match a username correctly. I think your comment related to this rather than to Author. The UserName used within Windows for an MSAccount-linked user account is listed in the response to the net user command - it is not the full UserName recognised by the online MSAccount.

You have marked this thread as Solved.

Best of luck,
Denis



Welcome to ElevenForum.

It's really worth making time to browse through the Tutorial index - there's a shortcut to it at the top of every page [within the Tutorials dropdown list].
- At the foot of the Tutorial index is a shortcut to download it as a spreadsheet.
- I download a new copy each month.
- By downloading it as a spreadsheet I can benefit from Excel's excellent filtering capabilities when I search for topics of interest.
- Tutorials are also listed at Tutorials - there's a shortcut to that at the top of every page.

You can search ElevenForum using the search box in the top-right corner of all ElevenForum webpages or using Advanced Search - ElevenForum
- You can also search ElevenForum threads in many general search engines, such as Google, by adding site:elevenforum.com after your search term. For example,
Taskbar setup site:elevenforum.com
- [This is what the search box in the top-right corner of ElevenForum webpages does automatically]
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home x64 Version 23H2 Build 22631.3447
Thank you for the information. It was actually the Author information that puzzled me because I thought that I had erased that user. Anyway based on what you wrote and what happened a little while ago I must have created Local user at some point after the Windows clean installation.

Sadly, I'm certain that there will be another opportunity for me to be confused again at the next Windows installation!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 22H2 OS Build 22621.675
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 5482 2-in-1
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-8565U
    Memory
    8GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ
    Internet Speed
    1Gbps/300Mbps (nominal)
    Browser
    Chrome, Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, Defender UI, Voodooshield
Author does not change when user names are deleted or changed.
If Fred creates a task then Fred will remain its Author even if the Fred account is deleted or the task is copied to a different computer.

You can change the Author entry but it's not quite straightforward. I've hardly ever found the effort worthwhile.
- Export the task definition [right-click on it & select Export …]
- Delete the task [right-click on it & select Delete]
- Open the task definition in Notepad or similar then change the entry in the line
<Author>ComputerName\Denis</Author>​
to, say,​
<Author>Fortitude</Author>​
or, indeed, anything else you want. Do not accidentally change its starting & ending <> bits.​
- If you have deleted the user account or are copying the task to a different computer then delete the whole of the line
<UserId>…..</UserId>
including its starting & ending <> bits. When imported, this entry will be replaced with the UserId of the user doing the importing.
- Import the edited task definition [the Import command is shown on the right-hand side of Task scheduler].

All the best,
Denis
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home x64 Version 23H2 Build 22631.3447
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