File permissions All Users\Application Data\TMG

[JohnJ 0]

I've been struggling with some file permission problems and wanted to share the solution I've found.

 

In my setup most "real" work is done in User accounts with Limited priviledges, and the single Admin account (with Admin priviledges) is restricted for installations, backups, etc. This helps to limit distribution of malware.

 

During installation TMG creates some important configuration files (including strings.dbf) and stores them in

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\The Master Genealogist v7.

 

WinXP by default sets permissions for files in All Users\Application Data\ to be read-write for the creator but read-only for everyone else without Admin priviledges. This creates problems if your setup looks like this:

 

• 1. Admin account for installation of TMG applying the multi-user option, where TMG is run once immediately after installation as required by the doco, and is then never used to access TMG.
  2. User account (with Limited priviledges) for the ongoing use of TMG
  

I've been experiencing weird error messages that didn't seem to cause any real problems but were worrying. Who wants to receive a pop-up message like "cursor in strings is read-only - ignore?" during that all-important backup process

 

I found a work-around in another thread where immediately after TMG installation, the User account (with admin privildeges temporarily granted just for this purpose) invokes TMG for the first time. The net effect is that the User account now has read-write access to those files in Application Data even when Limited priviledges are re-established.

 

This works for me because I'm the only non-Admin person who wants to use TMG. But if I had a true multi-user setup with other users wanting to use TMG then I'd use the cacls command to set priviledges accordingly.

 

Hope this helps others with similar file permission non-admin problems ... John.