User State Migration Tool 4.0 User's Guide

Published: June 17, 2009

Updated: June 29, 2010

Applies To: Windows 7

Introduction to USMT 4.0

Windows® User State Migration Tool (USMT) 4.0 is a scriptable command-line tool that provides a highly-customizable user-profile migration experience for IT professionals. USMT includes two components, ScanState and LoadState, and a set of modifiable .xml files: MigApp.xml, MigUser.xml, and MigDocs.xml. In addition, you can create custom .xml files to support your migration needs. You can also create a Config.xml file to specify files or settings to exclude from the migration.

noteNote
For the latest updates to this documentation, as well as USMT 4.0 white papers, go to this Microsoft Web site.

Benefits

USMT 4.0 provides the following benefits to businesses that are deploying Windows® operating systems:

  • Safely migrates user accounts, operating system and application settings.

  • Lowers the cost of deploying Windows® by preserving user state

  • Reduces end-user downtime required to customize desktops and find missing files

  • Reduces help-desk calls

  • Reduces the time needed for the user to become familiar with the new operating system

  • Increases employee satisfaction with the migration experience.

Limitations

USMT is intended for administrators who are performing large-scale automated deployments. If you are only migrating the user states of a few computers, you can use Windows Easy Transfer for computers running Windows Vista® or Windows® 7.

There are some scenarios in which the use of USMT 4.0 is not recommended. These include:

  • Migrations that require end-user interaction.

  • Migrations that require customization on a machine-by-machine basis.

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