After you log on to a Windows Vista-based system, you may notice that a temporary profile has been loaded instead of the profile that corresponds to the current user. Therefore, any changes that you make to the current desktop are lost after you log off the system. Additionally, the notification area may display the following error message:

Log Name: Application
Source: Microsoft-Windows-User Profiles Service
Date: Date
Event ID: 1511
Task Category: None
Level: Warning
Keywords: Classic
User: User
Computer: Computer
Description:
Windows cannot find the local profile and is logging you on with a temporary profile. Changes you make to this profile will be lost when you log off.

To resolve this problem, follow these steps:

1. Log on to the system by using an administrative user account other than the user account that is experiencing the problem.
2. Back up all data in the current user's profile folder if the profile folder still exists, and then delete the profile folder. By default, the profile resides in the following location:
   %SystemDrive%UsersUserName
3. Click Start, type regedit in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.
   
   If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.
4. Locate the following registry subkey:
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE ->SOFTWARE->Microsoft->Windows NT->CurrentVersion->ProfileList
5. Under the ProfileList subkey, delete the subkey that is named SID.bak.
   
   Note SID is a placeholder for the security identifier (SID) of the user account that is experiencing the problem. The SID.bak subkey should contain a ProfileImagePath registry entry that points to the original profile folder of the user account that is experiencing the problem.
6. Exit Registry Editor.
7. Log off the system.
8. Log on to the system again.

After you log on to the system, the profile folder is re-created.

If you need to relocate the old profile back, in the registry, in the profilelist you just modified, find the new key just created, then change the key of "ProfileImagePath" back to the location of your old profile.

PS: Recently found that the problem could happen on XP machine as well. Solution is same as above.

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