What Is Appdata, And What Are Local, Locallow, And Roaming_raw
Title: What is AppData, and what are Local, LocalLow, and Roaming?
URL Source: https://www.xda-developers.com/appdata/
Published Time: 2023-01-20T20:00:16Z
Markdown Content: What is AppData, and what are Local, LocalLow, and Roaming? ===============
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What is AppData, and what are Local, LocalLow, and Roaming?
By Adam Conway
Updated Oct 7, 2024
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If you have a Windows 11 PC, then you’ve probably heard of AppData. It’s a folder that contains three subfolders: Local, LocalLow, and Roaming. Understanding the different types of AppData folders and their uses can be helpful for troubleshooting, managing storage space, and more. If you’ve ever wondered what these folders are for and why they’re so important, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ll explain the difference between the three main types of AppData folders and what types of information are typically stored in each.
If you’re curious about where you’ve heard of AppData before, you might have come across it in relation to game modding in the past. Titles such as Minecraft actually store their files in AppData where you would need to place files to install mods. There are other applications too like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, but Minecraft is very likely to be the first place that you will have heard of it.
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What is AppData?
The one that everyone knows
When you install a program on Windows, it will typically be installed in either C:\Program Files or, in the case of a 32-bit program, to C:\Program Files (x86). The application will be installed for all users on the machine and require administrator access to write to. Any application settings stored in this folder will also propagate for all users.
That’s where AppData comes in. It’s a hidden folder that resides under each user folder. It’s located in C:\Users\<username>\AppData and contains program-specific information that may not relate to the program’s ability to run, such as user configurations. In your AppData folder, you will find files like:
- User-specific installations
- App configuration files
- Cached files
If you’ve ever installed a program that asked you whether you wanted to install it for all users or not, it was basically asking you if you wanted to install it into Program Files or AppData. Python is one such program that does this, and Discord will also install to a user’s AppData. Additionally, there are three subfolders in AppData, and their differences are important to note.
What is Local?
The Local folder is for storing files that can’t move from your user profile and also often contains files that may be too large to synchronize with a server. For example, it might house some files that are needed for a video game to run or your web browser cache, which are files that may be too large or wouldn’t make sense to transfer anywhere else. A developer might also use Local to store information that pertains to file paths on this particular machine. Moving these configuration files to another machine might cause programs to stop working, as the file paths would not match up.
Other files stored here tend to be log files, temporary files, or non-essential data.
What is LocalLow?
LocalLow is very similar to Local, but the “low” in the name refers to a lower level of access granted to the application. For example, a browser in incognito mode may be limited to only accessing the LocalLow folder to prevent it from being able to access the normal user data stored in Local. Essentially, this is aimed at applications that are running with with more restricted security permissions.
What is Roaming?
If you use a Windows machine on a domain (that is, a network of computers with a central domain controller that handles your login), then you might be familiar with the Roaming folder. Files in this folder are synced to other devices if you log in on the same domain since they’re considered important for using your device. This could be your web browser favorites and bookmarks, important application settings, and more.
It’s recommended to use this folder when the data being stored can be moved from device to device without any problems. For example, Minecraft stores its world files, screenshots, and more in the Roaming folder because these files can all be taken and migrated to a new device, where it’s expected to work.
Roaming is ideal for corporate environments, including settings such as Outlook profiles and networked printer configurations. It helps bring consistency to a user’s environment across different machines within a network by storing user-specific settings and files.
How to find AppData on Windows
It’s pretty easy
Finding AppData on any default installation on Windows is pretty simple, though you shouldn’t mess around with it unless you know what you’re doing.
- Press the Windows key + R at the same time.
- Type “%appdata%” or “%localappdata%” depending on whether you want to go to your Roaming folder or your Local folder.
- Press Enter.
The percentage signs around the words tell the run prompt to look at your local system variables to find where the AppData and LocalAppData folders are. Because these locations change per-user, it can’t be a system variable that manages these, so they’re created with every new user account.
On Windows 10, make sure you can see hidden folders by clicking View at the top and making sure that Hidden items is ticked. On Windows 11, click View at the top, hover over Show, and click Hidden items.
Alternatively, you can navigate to C:\Users\<user>\AppData in Windows Explorer.
You should now be able to find your AppData, whether you’re using Windows 10 or Windows 11. It’s hidden by default, and in most cases, you shouldn’t have to access it, and doing so might mess up how your computer functions. But if you need to, you’ll now know where to find it.
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XDAMember
XDAMember
#BH941521
Member Since 2024-11-18
Number of Posts 1
I’m curious about how the data in Roaming folder is sycned between devices? Is it through Domain Controllers? If that’s the case is there a folder on DC that stores Roaming data for all users.
2024-11-18 00:26:19
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MrLeftyRoxkstar1
MrLeftyRoxkstar1
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hi
2024-08-31 23:11:42
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