PC World — A computer running Windows 7 might be used by a single person, by a group of people in an office, or by a family in a home. Fortunately, Windows 7 was designed from the ground up to be a multiuser operating system. The new OS is flexible and can support many different scenarios, with each user having appropriate permissions and a customized environment. Every person using Windows 7 must log in with an account, and each account has a personalized desktop, Start menu, documents folder, history, favorites, and other customizations.

[ For complete coverage on Microsoft's new Windows 7 operating system -- including hands-on reviews, video tutorials and advice on enterprise rollouts-- see CIO.com's Windows 7 Bible. ]

All of that stuff resides in the Users folder on the root of the system drive, where each account has a subfolder named after it. The two main tools I'll describe in this article are the 'User Accounts and Family Safety' wizard-based tool, which you can find in the Control Panel, and the traditional 'Local Users and Groups' tool, which is available in Computer Management.

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Account Types

Before you start creating new users on your Windows 7 computer, you should understand the difference between the two main account types.

Administrators have full control over the system. They can install software programs and hardware drivers, and they can create and modify new users and groups. Additionally, they can reset passwords, set policies, and edit the Registry. The OS identifies tasks that require administrator permissions with a Windows security icon.

Standard users are permitted to log on to the computer, run programs, customize their accounts, and save files in their user folders. Users are restricted from making systemwide changes.

The First User

When Windows first installs, it asks you for a user name and password, which it then uses to create your first account. This account joins the Administrators group, which has the highest set of privileges. From this account you can create and manage all other user accounts. When one person is the sole user of a computer, this first account is sometimes the only one ever created. However, even if you are the only user, a recommended practice is to create a second, standard account for daily use, so that you have it separate from your account with administrative privileges for managing the system. If you want to install software or make other system changes while logged in as a standard user, never fear: When you attempt to make the change, Windows will prompt you to authenticate your administrator account so that you won't need to log on with it.

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