Microsoft designs its operating systems so that multiple users can work on the same PC. And so that they do not interfere with each other and have the opportunity to protect their personal data, an account system was implemented. Each of them has its own unique name and a personal folder in which all personal information. This article describes how change username and change the name your account folders in Windows 10 OS.
Precautions
Before changing your configuration operating system, always recommended create a restore point. This is a backup of everyone Windows settings 10, which is saved on the hard drive. If something goes wrong, you can easily run System Restore.
You should also do backup copy all data in your account folder: documents, photos, desktop contents. Just copy them to a separate directory on your disk.
How to change your Microsoft account name
In Windows 10, as in 8.1, users can create either a local (regular) account or connect the system to their general account Microsoft. All parameters of this account can be changed on a special website. To rename such an account, follow the instructions provided:
Please note that you cannot rename the name of your folder this way.
Local account
If you use to log in to Windows 10 regular account, you can easily change its settings in the system settings:
Here you can change password to login (or create one if you don't already have one).
How to rename a personal folder
Windows 10 does not have a special interface for changing the name of your personal folder. If you need to do this, the easiest way is create a new account with the required name and transfer all your information to him:
After this it will be realized new account and new personal folder. You can use them as main ones by copying everything necessary.
Remember that if you simply rename the directory to Windows Explorer- nothing will work correctly.
To change its name, you need to edit system registry. And this can damage your operating system.
Video on the topic
These instructions show the steps by which you can rename a user folder in the Windows 10 operating system
So, let's assume that we have changed the account name and we need to rename the user folder. You will need another local administrator account on your computer. Create a new local account with administrative privileges, how to do this is described in detail in this ➱
Go to folder Users located on the system drive (usually drive C), click right click mouse on the folder whose name you want to change (in this case, the folder User) and select the item in the context menu Rename
Rename the folder (for example NewUser)
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
Find the subsection with the characters S-1-5-21~ in its name. Find the ProfileImagePath parameter, the value of which will correspond to the name of the folder you want to rename. Double-click on the ProfileImagePath parameter and specify a new folder name, click the button OK. Close Registry Editor.
Log out and log in with the account you renamed the user folder. If you no longer need the account created specifically for these changes, you can delete it
Do not forget that many settings and parameters of programs and the operating system are stored in the user profile. The more programs you have installed on your computer, the more likely it is that the changes you make will not be enough. Most likely in Windows registry there will be an entry containing the full path to some file or folder that is in the user’s profile and this path will be indicated with a link to the old one, now no longer existing folder. This may cause problems with some programs.
You can try to avoid such problems. To do this, you will need to carefully examine the ENTIRE registry for links to the old, already renamed folder.
To do this, open the search window in the registry editor by pressing the key combination Ctrl + F, enter the path to the old profile folder in the search bar and press the button N go further
Carefully study all the parameters found and, if necessary, change the name of the folder to the newly renamed one. Then press the F3 key to continue the search and so on until the very end, that is, until such a window appears.
As you understand, the work ahead is painstaking and here you need to approach the issue with knowledge of the matter - that is, understand where you should change the name of the parameter to a new one, and where you can not do this or should not do it under any circumstances.
In progress Windows installations Many users don't think about how important it is to choose the right username. This is not only the name that you will see when logging into the operating system, but also one of the root words in the path to any installed program. The name of the user's folder depends on the account name.
Most Russian-speaking computer users prefer a username written in Cyrillic. The Windows operating system allows you to do this, but problems may arise for this reason. The fact is that some programs and games cannot work correctly if there are Cyrillic letters in the path to the executable files. In such a situation, the solution is obvious - rename the user's folder. This is not as easy to do as it seems at first glance.
Please note: If you need to rename a user folder, you should never do this in a standard way or using special programs, otherwise it will lead to errors that can only be corrected by reinstalling Windows.
Before you begin the instructions below, we recommend that you create a . This will come in handy if problems arise. You also need to know in advance the version of Windows 10 installed on your computer, since ways to change the folder name for various options operating systems will vary.
How to rename a user folder in Windows 10 Home
On most computers at home ordinary users"Home" version of the operating system installed Windows systems. It lacks some tools that are available in more professional variations of the system. Renaming a user folder in Windows 10 Home is more difficult than in the Pro and Enterprise versions, but it can be done.
Important: If you have many programs installed on your computer, some of them may stop working after you change the account name. We advise you to assess the risks before starting the process of changing the user folder name.
To rename a user folder in Windows 10 Home you need to:
- Create a new user or activate a hidden Windows account, which is intended to be used in emergency situations. To run a "secret account" you need. Next enter the command:
Important: Depending on the used Windows versions 10, you may need to enter “Administrator” instead of “Administrator”. This is necessary when the system has been localized third party software, which often happens with pirated versions of software. 
Please note: If you enabled a hidden account, you can disable it at the end of the procedure for changing the folder name. This is done with the following command, which must be executed in a command line running as an administrator:
Net user Administrator /active:no
If all the described procedures were performed correctly, then no problems should arise with operating system programs. The new username may conflict with some third party applications, but you can fix the situation by reinstalling them.
How to rename a user folder in Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise
The instructions described above are suitable for the Home version of the operating system, while in professional Windows options everything is much simpler. Follow the instructions described above up to point 6, after which you can restart the computer and the user folder name will be changed.
Windows 10 is not so different from previous versions of the OS from Microsoft, but performing some actions here causes difficulties for users. For example, do you know how to change your username in Windows 10? If not yet, then this instruction will help fill the gap in knowledge of the system's capabilities.
Local profile
If you use a regular local account, then you can change its name in the same way as in previous versions Windows - through the control panel. You should already know in Windows 10.
Your local profile window will open. You can change the name and type of account. There is nothing complicated: click on the “Change name” link and enter a new name in the line that appears. 
Then click “Rename” to save the changes. For the configuration to take effect, you must restart the computer. When you log in again, the profile name will be different. There is another, more quick way change name.
There is no fundamental difference between the described methods: in fact, you perform the same actions using different system tools.
Microsoft Account
If you use a Microsoft profile for authorization in the system, you will not be able to change its name through the control panel. The Microsoft account name can only be changed on the official website of the corporation using a special form. Let's see how to get there:
After clicking on the link, the browser will automatically launch. You will be directed to the Microsoft profile management site, where you must enter your username and password for authorization. After successful login, click on the “Change name” link. 
A special form will appear in which you need to specify personal data that will be used to log in to your Microsoft account. To apply the new configuration, click Save.
The question is how can you rename the Windows 10 user folder (meaning the folder that usually corresponds to your user name, located in C:\Users(which is displayed in Explorer as C:\Users, but the actual path to the folder is exactly what was specified) is set quite often. This guide shows you how to do this and change the user's folder name to what you want.
Why might this be needed? There are different situations here: one of the common ones is that if there are Cyrillic characters in the folder name, some programs that place components necessary for work in this folder may not work correctly; the second most common reason is that you simply don’t like the current name (besides, when using a Microsoft account, it is shortened and not always in a convenient way).
Warning: potentially, such actions, especially those performed with errors, can lead to incorrect operation of the system, a message that or the inability to log into the OS. Also, do not try to simply rename the folder in any way without performing the other procedures.
Rename a user folder in Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise.
The described method, when tested, worked successfully both for a local account Windows entries 10 and for a Microsoft account. The first step is to add a new one account administrator (not the one for which the folder name will change) to the system.
The easiest way to do this for our purposes is not to create a new account, but to enable the built-in hidden account. To do this, run command line on behalf of the Administrator (via context menu, called up by right-clicking on Start) and enter the command net user Administrator /active:yes and press Enter (if you do not have Russian-language Windows 10 or it was Russified by installing language pack, enter the account name in Latin - Administrator).
The next step is to log out of the system (in the Start menu, click on the user name - log out), and then on the lock screen select the new Administrator account and log in under it (if it does not appear for selection, restart the computer). When you log in for the first time, it will take some time to prepare the system.
Once you log into your account, follow these steps in order:
Close the Registry Editor, log out of the Administrator account and log into your regular account - the renamed user folder should work without problems. To disable a previously activated administrator account, run the command net user Administrator /active:no on the command line.
How to change user folder name in Windows 10 Home?
The method described above is not suitable for the home version of Windows 10, however, there is also a way to rename the user folder.
Note: this method was tested on a completely clean system. In some cases, after using it, problems may arise with the operation of programs installed by the user.
So, to rename a user folder in Windows 10 Home, follow these steps:
- Create an administrator account or activate the built-in one as described above. Log out of your current account and log in with a new administrator account.
- Rename the user folder (via Explorer or Command Prompt).
- Also, as described above, change the value of the parameter ProfileImagePath in the registry section HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows NT\ CurrentVersion\ ProfileList to a new one (in the subsection corresponding to your account).
- In the Registry Editor, select the root folder (Computer, on the top left side) then in the menu select Edit - Search and search for C:\Users\Old_folder_name
- When found, change it to a new one and press Edit - Find Next (or F3) to search for places in the registry where the old path remains.
- When finished, close Registry Editor.
After completing all these steps, log out of the account you are using and go to the user account for which the folder name was changed. Everything should work without failures (but in this case there may be exceptions).
We hope that this material will be useful to you. If you have any questions or additions, write in the comments.