Who are the 'Unknown' Users in Windows 7?

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Unknown users in Windows 7 may appear due to software installations or as remnants from previous setups, often linked to GUIDs in the registry. Users can reclaim ownership and delete these accounts if they are unrecognized, and it's generally safe to do so if the system operates normally. If unknown accounts reappear, checking the GUIDs can reveal their origins, potentially indicating software references. Additionally, if a computer was previously part of a domain and is now disconnected, it may show unknown accounts due to inaccessible active directory information. Monitoring the situation over time is advisable to ensure no further issues arise.
adjacent
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What are they? I never have any user named 'Unknown'. :confused:
Virus?
 

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Borg said:
Have you been copying files to a new installation?
No.

Ah,finally its gone. I reclaimed my ownership and deleted those accounts. However,I can't still understand why this unknown username was present there. Has this happened with thy computer before?
 
adjacent said:
No.

Ah,finally its gone. I reclaimed my ownership and deleted those accounts. However,I can't still understand why this unknown username was present there. Has this happened with thy computer before?
Probably. I usually just delete accounts that I don't recognize. Sometimes software installations will create accounts like that. If everything else is operating OK, then I wouldn't worry too much about it. I would just check over the next few weeks to see if they reappear. If so, then a lookup of the GUIDs in the registry would be in order.
 
Borg said:
If so, then a lookup of the GUIDs in the registry would be in order.
What is that? And why do thou do that? (:smile: This old fashioned English is very funny. Is it allowed here,Mentors?)
 
adjacent said:
What is that? And why do thou do that? (:smile: This old fashioned English is very funny. Is it allowed here,Mentors?)

The GUID is a Global Unique IDentifier. It's that S-1-... part in the parenthesis. The Windows registry heavily uses that to uniquely identify things. If you search for the GUIDs from the unknown users, you'll probably find that it references some software that you've installed.
 
Was this computer ever part of a domain?
When a domain system is disconnected from the network, account information cannot be retrieved because the computer cannot reach the active directory for user info.
 
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