Would you like to keep users from sharing files and folders that may be sensitive in nature? Have you tried removing the Shared Documents folder so that no one can access the folder?
You should know that removing the Shared Documents folder will not prevent file sharing. There are many ways for determined people to share files: removable flash drives and the Internet are but a couple of ways. However, removing the Shared Documents folder may prove to be a deterrent to someone who doesn’t want to go through the trouble to share files with someone on the same computer or network.
This is a registry tweak for Windows XP. Remember, you should always create a backup before modifying the registry. Changes to the registry are irreversible if you do not have a backup. With a backup in place, you are able to go back to your previous registry settings if any issues arise.
These are the instructions:
- Click Start and go to Run. Enter regedit.
- Locate HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE on the left side of the registry editor. Expand the folder.
- Next, go to SOFTWARE. Expand this folder and look for Microsoft.
- Once you’ve located Microsoft, expand the folder and go to Windows.
- Expand the Windows folder to get to CurrentVersion. Expand CurrentVersion.
- Look for the Explorer folder under CurrentVersion. Expand this folder too.
- This should take you to MyComputer. Expand MyComputer.
- Locate the NameSpace folder and expand. You should now be able to see DelegateFolders.
- Expand DelegateFolders. Do you see the folders underneath this?
- Look for {59031a47-3f72-44a7-89c5-5595fe6b30ee} and delete. Be careful when deleting this key. Long letters and numbers can be confusing. Be sure that you are deleting the correct one.
- Exit the registry and reboot.