There are times when it is beneficial to remove profiles from workstations. This last school year we ran into a couple of profiles that became corrupted and it was easier to remove them and allow the server to rebuild them, or the computers in the computer labs will build up profiles over time and it is best to remove them.
There are a few different ways to accomplish this from manual deletion by logging into the machine as an administrator to a remote deployment that will clean up the machines remotely.
Method #1: Delete through control panel
- Open up “Control Panel | System and Security | System”
- In the dialog click on “Advanced system settings” (requires Admin rights)
- The “System Properties” dialog will be displayed
- Make sure you are in the “Advanced” register
- In the “User Profiles” section click on “Settings”
- The “User Profiles” dialog is displayed
- Select the account. Hit Delete.
Method #2: Through Sysdm.cpl direct
- Start | Run
- sysdm.cpl
- switch to register “Advanced”
- In the “User Profiles” section click on “Settings”
- The “User Profiles” dialog is displayed
- Select the account. Hit Delete.
Method #3 – Delprof2.exe via PDQ Deploy.
We found a utility that was a FREE download that can be ran at the command prompt and it will remove all non-special accounts for the computer. The utility is called delprof2.exe. We then put it in the centralized, shared, distribution folder on the TPAW-01 server, and wrote a command package in PDQ Deploy. This can be ran at anytime, and is set to wake computers before it runs the command. We are thinking of scheduling this command to run every Friday before the shut down sequence on the computers.
Documentation for delprof2.exe: https://helgeklein.com/free-tools/delprof2-user-profile-deletion-tool/
Download page for delprof2.exe: https://helgeklein.com/download/