The Neverending Folder

[Skyfrog]

What is up with this? Screenshot

If I understand the way the new junctions feature works, it so older hard coded applications that look for a certain folder, say Documents and Settings, will get redirected to the new Vista location Users. However in this case if I click on the link, instead of taking me to the location it points to it just opens another instance of itself. Clicking again opens another one, until eventually explorer locked up on me. Maybe I'm mistaken but that's not supposed to happen is it?

Edited September 19, 2006 by Skyfrog

[bledd]

lol weird

one more to fix bill

[LLXX]

Same effect as if you created a shortcut pointing to itself... recursion

[Skyfrog]

Now that I've looked again, I see what's going on. The Application Data junction has another Application Data folder in it, and that one has another one in it, and so on to infinity. None of the other junction folders (local settings, nethood, cookies, etc) has a copy of itself inside. The only ones that do this are the "local settings/application data" folders. It must be a bug, unless there is some reason for them to be like that. Screenshot 2 Screenshot 3

Edit: I found a very confusing explanation stating that this is by design. Scroll down to the post made at 10:39 AM. I am not sure if that's correct or not, I guess it is but I have a headache now so I'm going to bed.

Edited September 19, 2006 by Skyfrog

[Spooky]

Its by design, but basically you using a shortcut in a virtual file type system (called junctions) that points back to its self in a way. Its not a real shortcut persay. So for example:

(using the XP file path of: C:\Documents and Settings\<user name/profile name here>, in this example)

A program that installed fine in WinXP installs in Vista and needs to access the 'Documents and Settings' (a junction in Vista) to complete the install. The target of the junction is a User. In WinXP this path would have been C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here>, this would have been a actual 'hard' file path coded into the software install routines or set up files. With Vista however, there is no actual C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here> file path, but in order to get software to install that worked fine in XP - Vista needs to provide the file path the software wants. So, the software starts installing and Vista detects that its looking for the actual file path of C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here>, Vista in effect says 'Yoo Hoo, over here" and it finds the expected system folder C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here> but instead of finding it in an actual file path it finds it in the virtual file system in the form of the junction when it hits the junction Vista has directed it to, but thats OK cause it has found the file path it was looking for. So in effect Vista has recreated the older XP file system in a virtual way by using junctions so software made prior to Vista can still have a chance of installing.

All the installing software sees is 'C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here>' and picturing this in Vista 'junction' terms this path would really be 'C:\<some junction on the desired install path>\<desired install destination>', but the installing software doesn't see this and doesn't care because the install routines thinks the path is still 'C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here>', it doesn't know what a junction is and thinks its an actual file path.

so, still using the XP file path of: C:\Documents and Settings\<user name/profile name here>, in this example;

When you click on this junction you get redirected back to the junction because there is no install destination youv'e supplied the junction. The junction, from what i know so far, has a native target of <some user> (like in the older XP system of C:\Documents and Settings\<user name here>), but the software installing tells it which user depending on whos logged in at the time as windows reports the logged in user. Since just clicking on the junction doesn't tell Vista what user profile in the 'Documents and Settings' the junction default behavior is to simply redirect to its self and you get the effect you described with the never ending folder, where as something pre-Vista being installed would have told Vista "Hey, I want to put some files in C:\Documents and Settings\<user name/profile name here>" and vista would have sent it on its way by providing the file path thru the junction.

Thats about the best way I can explain it. While it is confusing, its by design and it works as you demonstrated to yourself without realizing it. With previous systems wev'e had to think two dimensionally i.e...create a directory and put files in it but the items were always being physically created on the hard drive. With Vista we now have to start thinking maybe more three dimensionally, i.e...we have physical locations on the hard drive for parts of our file system but part of the file system is now virtual and doesn't actually reside on the hard drive.

Now that I've looked again, I see what's going on. The Application Data junction has another Application Data folder in it, and that one has another one in it, and so on to infinity. None of the other junction folders (local settings, nethood, cookies, etc) has a copy of itself inside. The only ones that do this are the "local settings/application data" folders. It must be a bug, unless there is some reason for them to be like that. Screenshot 2 Screenshot 3

Edit: I found a very confusing explanation stating that this is by design. Scroll down to the post made at 10:39 AM. I am not sure if that's correct or not, I guess it is but I have a headache now so I'm going to bed.

Edited September 24, 2006 by Spooky