Forum Discussion
Keep Favorites Synced between Internet Explorer and Edge NOT available in Edge Chromium
Chris Jackson Deleted
I'm not quite sure what's so hard to understand about the issue.
This has nothing to do with Windows 7 or with Internet Explorer specifically. How IE mode suddenly came into the picutre - I have no idea. This is all about where to store the favorites in the new Edge.
The issue is the following:
- Users are using multiple computers. To have the same desktop, documents and favorites on all those computers Microsoft's "Folder Redirection" is used and configured through GPOs.
- So Internet Explorer's favorites are stored on e.g. \\server\users\%username%\favorites
- The old Edge has a GPO that allows it to automagically sync its own favorites with Internet Explorer's favorites that are stored on that network path. If you add a favorite in either IE or the old Edge it is automagically synced to the other browser instantly.
Now the new Edge comes along and we have to face the following limitations:
- Any kind of cloud-sync or usage of Microsoft accounts is not possible due to data privacy regulations
- The new Edge is storing its favorites in the local file deep inside the %LOCALAPPDATA% folder of the user.
This causes issues for us in a number of ways.
While the first-run import of favorites (from the redirected Internet Explorer favorites) is currently broken in v80 (its supposed to be back in v81) it only provides a momentary snapshot of the redirected favorites.
The bookmarks file being a local file means that we cannot easily back it up either. And when the user receives a new PC or uses a different machine than he usually does he'll have to import all the favorites again, from the redirected Internet Explorer favorites. But all the favorites he has managed in the new Edge in the meantime are not available (or even gone for good in the case of a new PC).
Importing the same old IE favorites on different PCs will soon result in having different favorites on all those PCs. And there is no way to easily merge them either.
This is a real problem.
We really need a way to redirect the bookmarks file to a network location so that it can be:
- used from multiple PCs
- be backed up easily during the regular server backup
- not get lost when the user's PC dies or gets replaced for another reason
All this was easily doable with the redirected favorites folder used by Internet Explorer and thanks to the "keep favorites synced" GPO in the old Edge Browser.
Also, please do not suggest to use the "UserDataDir" policy. This would redirect the entire user profile to a different location. Cache and everything. It is also not quite certain whether a redirected UserDataDir can actually be used by multiple instances of Edge on different computers at the same time (locked files issue and such). But even if it was possible, we really don't want to roam 100MB+ of useless data.
All we are really looking for is the possibility to specify a network location for the "bookmarks" file that is by default stored under "C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Edge\User Data\Default". That's all we really want and need.
Bonus points for actually bringing back the "keep favorites synced between IE and Edge" policy that the old Edge supported. But that would really only be the cherry on top.
*confused*
Is it the way it's supposed to work with v85? Nothing to do at all?
*looking into it further*
So, if you want on-premise sync, get the latest admx/adml files and configure the following policies:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge]
"BrowserSignin"=dword:00000002
"ConfigureOnPremisesAccountAutoSignIn"=dword:00000001
"RoamingProfileLocation"="${documents}\\Edge-Profile"
"RoamingProfileSupportEnabled"=dword:00000001
"SyncDisabled"=dword:00000000That should work - for the most part.
What doesn't work, and probably never will, is when you are running multiple browser instances on more than one computer and modify the list of favorites - if you have roamed the "profile.pb" file to a network location and not to a local roaming profile folder that gets synced on logoff. The whole thing is not meant to be used on more than one computer at a time.
- Thank you, the practice has been in place before my time here, but I'll discuss this with my team members.
- As for principle: you should not. creating a new profile every time a user logs on adds to the time of lost before the user can do any work. You should leave then and set a policy that deletes them after say 3 weeks if not used anymore.
As for where the "We've signed you in" message comes from, that comes from, I believe, the fire "First Run" and "Local State" in LocalAppData. This is incredibly frustrating. I can't get the default location or any location to work. Not seeing this location at all AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Edge. No edge folder under any users roaming data folder. Tried redirecting to a local folder, to a network share and nothing.
Confirmed i have the 5 registry keys set and running version 85.0.564.44
The GPO is applying the registry is being updated, but no profile.db file and no folder created if it doesn't exist and creating the folder manually doesn't make a difference.
Must be another GPO that needs setting or removing to get it to work.
- Are the local profiles removed from the machine after logoff?
Thank you for that.
Only issue we have is every time you start edge after login you are greeted by a "We've signed you in" message and the user needs to click OK.
Does anyone know how to stop this so users are signed in silently?
Thanks
With 2 instances of Edge on 2 computers you mean: the same user logs on on 2 different systems and start Edge which opens the same profile.db file on 1 location.
Iam not suprised that this does not work. I suppose file and record locking was never part of the design in handling the profile.db file.
I would suggest in using classic roaming profiles with a lot of exclusions to roam the user experience. Then 2 instances of the same user have 2 local copies and the only risk is that the last one written, wins.
I agree that this requires quite a bit of fast storage, preferable in DFS config and some setting up of the roaming config (Exclusions!!)
Using a powershell or other scripting around a highly custom / specific solution seems to me even harder to support or to get supported.
You could also use a 3rd party roaming solution like VMware DEM to do this for you, but that costs money and needs setting and maintaining up too, which is even more difficult then roaming profiles.Henno_Keers Yes, the roaming profile location is optional. But for us it is kind of crucial.
We've been using Folder Redirection to redirect the favorites folder to a network path, so every instance of Internet Explorer (and the old Edge thanks to the sync GPO) were accessing the same favorites, not matter what computer you were logged onto.
Since we aren't using Roaming Profiles the plan was to put the "profile.pb" file onto a network path too, but ... it doesn't even take me 2 minutes to break the synchronisation of favorites with two instances of Edge running on two different computers.
This is almost worse than having no sync between computers. Because there is no easy way to get these computers to sync again.
We really need a way that allows concurrent Edge sessions on multiple computers, sharing the same set of favorites among all devices the user is currently logged onto.
I've already thought of utilizing powershell login and logout scripts to read the "bookmarks" file and extract all favorites from it, storing them on a network path and syncing them that way. Adding new ones that way would be easy, but deleting them would be a pain when multiple computers are involved (one always has an older state than the others).
But as things stand now, I'm not sure I can enable the current on-premise "solution" as it breaks way too easily and causes issues for the user but also is sure to cause quite a number of support calls for our internal IT hotline. Shame.
p.s. Please stop feeding the trolls.
- I believe that the "RoamingProfileLocation" setting is optional, per default the profiel.pb file will be created in AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Edge. Which is fine if you have roaming profiles enabled on your domain.
hmmm no luck to get it to work for me....
Trying to set a roamingProfileLocation to something like this \\SERVER\SHARE\%username%\Edge
I've tried %username, $username$, ${username).
The path works in explorer the share exists as we already send data there for IE, and other applications. But not getting Edge to put anything in that folder.
Just looking at this now for Chrome.
https://www.chromium.org/administrators/policy-list-3/user-data-directory-variables
it suggests $(user_name) so I'll try that now!
