Setting up roaming profiles

Question

I am trying to set up roaming profiles on Ubuntu Server. My goal is to be able to log on to the server from any computer in my house running Ubuntu, and have the profile for the user I logged in as loaded onto that computer. What is the easiest way to accomplish this?

Answer 1

I've done this recently. First, I'm assuming that you've got samba4 installed and configured.

I would advise you to do the configuration required for roaming profiles from a windows box, since tools don't appear to be available for the linux platform. I'd be interested to know if I'm wrong on this point.

Log onto the domain you're going to administer as domain administrator.

Ensure you've got the Windows Remote Server Administration Tools pack installed on said windows box.

Go to the control panel, select Programs, turn windows features on or off. Install the feature "AD DS and AD LDS Tools" under role Administration Tools.

Once this is installed, from the start menu, search for dsa.msc, then pin it to the task bar.

Start dsa.msc tool. Expand the domain, and find the user you want in the domain you're administering. If the user isn't there, then create one. Right click on that user and select properties. Navigate to the Profile tab, then set a network location like \\server\profile\%USERNAME% for the profile path field.

Okay, now the user should have a roaming profile. I've only just tried this and found that performance isn't great (e.g. a user with a profile of a couple of gb has a long wait for logon and log off on new machines.) For this reason, I would suggest mapping a drive for the user instead. Your mileage may vary.

Update I've found a windows hotfix that may explain the login/logout delays I was experiencing. I'm surprised that it's not a part of windows updates.