Moving "Program Files" and "Users" folders to another partition [Windows 7]

I’ve been scouring the internet for a while now, looking for a definitive guide on how to move both the "Program Files" and "Users" folders over to a different partition, but I haven't quite found a single resource that explains the whole process from start to finish. My goal is to set things up so that all my software installs to that secondary drive by default, and more importantly, I want my user profile—where all my documents and personal files live—to reside there too. It would be such a relief to have everything organized on that extra space right from the get-go!
I’ve heard whispers that I might need to tweak something within the registry, but honestly, I'm feeling a little lost on exactly which settings need my attention.
I would be truly grateful if anyone out there with a bit of expertise could take a moment to walk me through this in more detail! I'm really looking to wrap my head around the finer points, so any deep dives or thorough explanations you're willing to share would be absolutely wonderful.

So, I’ve been tinkering around with my Windows 7 setup lately, and I wanted to share how I finally decided to partition my 250GB hard drive. It took me a little while to settle on the right balance, but I think I’ve landed on a pretty solid configuration that keeps everything organized. I ended up splitting things up into three distinct partitions: I allocated 50GB specifically for the Windows installation itself, then set aside a much larger 170GB chunk to handle all my Program Files, user data, and general clutter, and I left the remaining 15GB just for Linux. It feels quite satisfying to have that little dedicated space tucked away for my Linux projects!

I just finished getting a fresh installation of Windows up and running today, and everything feels incredibly smooth, though I've hit a bit of a snag with the drivers. They’re acting up quite a bit at the moment, so I'm currently working through getting all the hardware properly recognized and stabilized.

If I happened to miss anything crucial that you all might need to know, please bear with me—I’ll be sure to jump back in and add those details right away!

Thanks so much in advance for all your help!🙂

You're just looking for trouble at this point. 🙂

If you want to mess with the Program Files directory, you'll need to find the key at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\ProgramFilesDir and manually type in your new path... though, if you're running 64-bit Windows, you’ve also got to go in and swap out both the ProgramFilesDir (x86) and the ProgramW6432Dir keys. Honestly? You aren't going to fully scrub Program Files from your boot partition—some stuff just lives there by default, and certain programs absolutely insist on installing themselves onto the C drive.

The fallout could be messy—we're talking about Windows Update potentially failing to grab everything it needs, or weird glitches popping up in IE and WMP...

Moving the Users folder is a whole different beast—it's a bit more complicated -> http://lifehacker.com/5467758/move-t...y-in-windows-7

Look, before you start tearing things apart, do yourself a favor and make a full system image of your C drive—that way, when everything inevitably goes sideways, you can actually revert back to how things were. 🙂

Well, after thinking it over, I’ve decided to just leave Program Files right where it is on the C drive and focus my efforts on moving the Users folder instead...
Thanks so much for getting back to me with that advice... I'll be sure to reach out and let you know if everything goes smoothly!

Haha, honestly... looking at that link above, I can't help but notice how much unnecessary complication there is for something that should be such a breeze to handle...
I actually found a much more straightforward way by just heading over to my C:\Users\[username] folder and tweaking the settings for my Documents, Pictures, Videos, Downloads, and Music folders... here is exactly how I did it:
I just right-clicked the folder, went into Properties, hit the Location [tab], and then simply typed in the file paths for the corresponding folders I had already set up on my D drive.🙂

This link breaks down how to move the entire Users folder over to a different partition—not just some individual user's My Documents folder, but the whole thing. 🙂

Oh, man... honestly, this was exactly what I needed to hear... maybe I didn't quite express myself clearly the first time around