Functions/GenXdev.Windows/Set-KnownFolderPath.ps1
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############################################################################### ###############################################################################define known folder guids for windows shell api $knownFolders = @{ '3DObjects' = '31C0DD25-9439-4F12-BF41-7FF4EDA38722'; 'AddNewPrograms' = 'de61d971-5ebc-4f02-a3a9-6c82895e5c04'; 'AdminTools' = '724EF170-A42D-4FEF-9F26-B60E846FBA4F'; 'AppUpdates' = 'a305ce99-f527-492b-8b1a-7e76fa98d6e4'; 'CDBurning' = '9E52AB10-F80D-49DF-ACB8-4330F5687855'; 'ChangeRemovePrograms' = 'df7266ac-9274-4867-8d55-3bd661de872d'; 'CommonAdminTools' = 'D0384E7D-BAC3-4797-8F14-CBA229B392B5'; 'CommonOEMLinks' = 'C1BAE2D0-10DF-4334-BEDD-7AA20B227A9D'; 'CommonPrograms' = '0139D44E-6AFE-49F2-8690-3DAFCAE6FFB8'; 'CommonStartMenu' = 'A4115719-D62E-491D-AA7C-E74B8BE3B067'; 'CommonStartup' = '82A5EA35-D9CD-47C5-9629-E15D2F714E6E'; 'CommonTemplates' = 'B94237E7-57AC-4347-9151-B08C6C32D1F7'; 'ComputerFolder' = '0AC0837C-BBF8-452A-850D-79D08E667CA7'; 'ConflictFolder' = '4bfefb45-347d-4006-a5be-ac0cb0567192'; 'ConnectionsFolder' = '6F0CD92B-2E97-45D1-88FF-B0D186B8DEDD'; 'Contacts' = '56784854-C6CB-462b-8169-88E350ACB882'; 'ControlPanelFolder' = '82A74AEB-AEB4-465C-A014-D097EE346D63'; 'Cookies' = '2B0F765D-C0E9-4171-908E-08A611B84FF6'; 'Desktop' = 'B4BFCC3A-DB2C-424C-B029-7FE99A87C641'; 'Documents' = 'FDD39AD0-238F-46AF-ADB4-6C85480369C7'; 'Downloads' = '374DE290-123F-4565-9164-39C4925E467B'; 'Favorites' = '1777F761-68AD-4D8A-87BD-30B759FA33DD'; 'Fonts' = 'FD228CB7-AE11-4AE3-864C-16F3910AB8FE'; 'Games' = 'CAC52C1A-B53D-4edc-92D7-6B2E8AC19434'; 'GameTasks' = '054FAE61-4DD8-4787-80B6-090220C4B700'; 'History' = 'D9DC8A3B-B784-432E-A781-5A1130A75963'; 'InternetCache' = '352481E8-33BE-4251-BA85-6007CAEDCF9D'; 'InternetFolder' = '4D9F7874-4E0C-4904-967B-40B0D20C3E4B'; 'Links' = 'bfb9d5e0-c6a9-404c-b2b2-ae6db6af4968'; 'LocalAppData' = 'F1B32785-6FBA-4FCF-9D55-7B8E7F157091'; 'LocalAppDataLow' = 'A520A1A4-1780-4FF6-BD18-167343C5AF16'; 'LocalizedResourcesDir' = '2A00375E-224C-49DE-B8D1-440DF7EF3DDC'; 'Music' = '4BD8D571-6D19-48D3-BE97-422220080E43'; 'NetHood' = 'C5ABBF53-E17F-4121-8900-86626FC2C973'; 'NetworkFolder' = 'D20BEEC4-5CA8-4905-AE3B-BF251EA09B53'; 'OriginalImages' = '2C36C0AA-5812-4b87-BFD0-4CD0DFB19B39'; 'PhotoAlbums' = '69D2CF90-FC33-4FB7-9A0C-EBB0F0FCB43C'; 'Pictures' = '33E28130-4E1E-4676-835A-98395C3BC3BB'; 'Playlists' = 'DE92C1C7-837F-4F69-A3BB-86E631204A23'; 'PrintersFolder' = '76FC4E2D-D6AD-4519-A663-37BD56068185'; 'PrintHood' = '9274BD8D-CFD1-41C3-B35E-B13F55A758F4'; 'Profile' = '5E6C858F-0E22-4760-9AFE-EA3317B67173'; 'ProgramData' = '62AB5D82-FDC1-4DC3-A9DD-070D1D495D97'; 'ProgramFiles' = '905e63b6-c1bf-494e-b29c-65b732d3d21a'; 'ProgramFilesX64' = '6D809377-6AF0-444b-8957-A3773F02200E'; 'ProgramFilesX86' = '7C5A40EF-A0FB-4BFC-874A-C0F2E0B9FA8E'; 'ProgramFilesCommon' = 'F7F1ED05-9F6D-47A2-AAAE-29D317C6F066'; 'ProgramFilesCommonX64' = '6365D5A7-0F0D-45E5-87F6-0DA56B6A4F7D'; 'ProgramFilesCommonX86' = 'DE974D24-D9C6-4D3E-BF91-F4455120B917'; 'Programs' = 'A77F5D77-2E2B-44C3-A6A2-ABA601054A51'; 'Public' = 'DFDF76A2-C82A-4D63-906A-5644AC457385'; 'PublicDesktop' = 'C4AA340D-F20F-4863-AFEF-F87EF2E6BA25'; 'PublicDocuments' = 'ED4824AF-DCE4-45A8-81E2-FC7965083634'; 'PublicDownloads' = '3D644C9B-1FB8-4f30-9B45-F670235F79C0'; 'PublicGameTasks' = 'DEBF2536-E1A8-4c59-B6A2-414586476AEA'; 'PublicMusic' = '3214FAB5-9757-4298-BB61-92A9DEAA44FF'; 'PublicPictures' = 'B6EBFB86-6907-413C-9AF7-4FC2ABF07CC5'; 'PublicVideos' = '2400183A-6185-49FB-A2D8-4A392A602BA3'; 'QuickLaunch' = '52a4f021-7b75-48a9-9f6b-4b87a210bc8f'; 'Recent' = 'AE50C081-EBD2-438A-8655-8A092E34987A'; 'RecycleBinFolder' = 'B7534046-3ECB-4C18-BE4E-64CD4CB7D6AC'; 'ResourceDir' = '8AD10C31-2ADB-4296-A8F7-E4701232C972'; 'RoamingAppData' = '3EB685DB-65F9-4CF6-A03A-E3EF65729F3D'; 'SampleMusic' = 'B250C668-F57D-4EE1-A63C-290EE7D1AA1F'; 'SamplePictures' = 'C4900540-2379-4C75-844B-64E6FAF8716B'; 'SamplePlaylists' = '15CA69B3-30EE-49C1-ACE1-6B5EC372AFB5'; 'SampleVideos' = '859EAD94-2E85-48AD-A71A-0969CB56A6CD'; 'SavedGames' = '4C5C32FF-BB9D-43b0-B5B4-2D72E54EAAA4'; 'SavedSearches' = '7d1d3a04-debb-4115-95cf-2f29da2920da'; 'SEARCH_CSC' = 'ee32e446-31ca-4aba-814f-a5ebd2fd6d5e'; 'SEARCH_MAPI' = '98ec0e18-2098-4d44-8644-66979315a281'; 'SearchHome' = '190337d1-b8ca-4121-a639-6d472d16972a'; 'SendTo' = '8983036C-27C0-404B-8F08-102D10DCFD74'; 'SidebarDefaultParts' = '7B396E54-9EC5-4300-BE0A-2482EBAE1A26'; 'SidebarParts' = 'A75D362E-50FC-4fb7-AC2C-A8BEAA314493'; 'StartMenu' = '625B53C3-AB48-4EC1-BA1F-A1EF4146FC19'; 'Startup' = 'B97D20BB-F46A-4C97-BA10-5E3608430854'; 'SyncManagerFolder' = '43668BF8-C14E-49B2-97C9-747784D784B7'; 'SyncResultsFolder' = '289a9a43-be44-4057-a41b-587a76d7e7f9'; 'SyncSetupFolder' = '0F214138-B1D3-4a90-BBA9-27CBC0C5389A'; 'System' = '1AC14E77-02E7-4E5D-B744-2EB1AE5198B7'; 'SystemX86' = 'D65231B0-B2F1-4857-A4CE-A8E7C6EA7D27'; 'Templates' = 'A63293E8-664E-48DB-A079-DF759E0509F7'; 'TreeProperties' = '5b3749ad-b49f-49c1-83eb-15370fbd4882'; 'UserProfiles' = '0762D272-C50A-4BB0-A382-697DCD729B80'; 'UsersFiles' = 'f3ce0f7c-4901-4acc-8648-d5d44b04ef8f'; 'Videos' = '18989B1D-99B5-455B-841C-AB7C74E4DDFC'; 'Windows' = 'F38BF404-1D43-42F2-9305-67DE0B28FC23'; } ############################################################################### <# .SYNOPSIS Modifies the physical path of a Windows known folder. .DESCRIPTION Uses the Windows Shell32 API to relocate system folders like Documents, Downloads, Desktop, or other known Windows folders to a new location. The function validates the target path exists, looks up the folder's unique GUID from the comprehensive known folders registry, and uses the SHSetKnownFolderPath API to perform the relocation. Common use cases include moving user folders to a different drive for space management or organization. Exercise caution when moving system-critical folders as this may affect system stability. .LICENSE Copyright (C) 2026 René Vaessen / GenXdev This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version. This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details. You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program. If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>. .PARAMETER KnownFolder The name of the known folder to relocate. Supports all Windows known folders including user folders (Documents, Downloads, Desktop, Pictures, Videos, Music), system folders (Windows, System, ProgramFiles), and special folders (Recent, Favorites, SendTo, etc.). Use with caution as moving certain system folders may cause instability. .PARAMETER Path The new physical file system path where the known folder should be located. The path must exist before attempting the move operation. The function will throw an error if the path is invalid or inaccessible. .EXAMPLE Set-KnownFolderPath -KnownFolder 'Documents' -Path 'D:\UserDocs' .EXAMPLE Set-KnownFolderPath Downloads 'E:\Downloads' #> function Set-KnownFolderPath { [CmdletBinding(SupportsShouldProcess = $true, ConfirmImpact = 'High')] param( ################################################################### [Parameter( Position = 0, Mandatory = $true, HelpMessage = 'Known folder to modify' )] [ValidateSet('3DObjects', 'AddNewPrograms', 'AdminTools', 'AppUpdates', 'CDBurning', 'ChangeRemovePrograms', 'CommonAdminTools', 'CommonOEMLinks', 'CommonPrograms', 'CommonStartMenu', 'CommonStartup', 'CommonTemplates', 'ComputerFolder', 'ConflictFolder', 'ConnectionsFolder', 'Contacts', 'ControlPanelFolder', 'Cookies', 'Desktop', 'Documents', 'Downloads', 'Favorites', 'Fonts', 'Games', 'GameTasks', 'History', 'InternetCache', 'InternetFolder', 'Links', 'LocalAppData', 'LocalAppDataLow', 'LocalizedResourcesDir', 'Music', 'NetHood', 'NetworkFolder', 'OriginalImages', 'PhotoAlbums', 'Pictures', 'Playlists', 'PrintersFolder', 'PrintHood', 'Profile', 'ProgramData', 'ProgramFiles', 'ProgramFilesX64', 'ProgramFilesX86', 'ProgramFilesCommon', 'ProgramFilesCommonX64', 'ProgramFilesCommonX86', 'Programs', 'Public', 'PublicDesktop', 'PublicDocuments', 'PublicDownloads', 'PublicGameTasks', 'PublicMusic', 'PublicPictures', 'PublicVideos', 'QuickLaunch', 'Recent', 'RecycleBinFolder', 'ResourceDir', 'RoamingAppData', 'SampleMusic', 'SamplePictures', 'SamplePlaylists', 'SampleVideos', 'SavedGames', 'SavedSearches', 'SEARCH_CSC', 'SEARCH_MAPI', 'SearchHome', 'SendTo', 'SidebarDefaultParts', 'SidebarParts', 'StartMenu', 'Startup', 'SyncManagerFolder', 'SyncResultsFolder', 'SyncSetupFolder', 'System', 'SystemX86', 'Templates', 'TreeProperties', 'UserProfiles', 'UsersFiles', 'Videos', 'Windows')] [string] $KnownFolder, ################################################################### [Parameter( Position = 1, Mandatory = $true, HelpMessage = 'New path for the known folder' )] [ValidateNotNullOrEmpty()] [Alias('FullName')] [string] $Path ################################################################### ) begin { # check if shell32 api type is already loaded to avoid redefining $type = ([System.Management.Automation.PSTypeName]` 'KnownFolders.SHSetKnownFolderPathPS').Type if (-not $type) { # define windows api function signature for shell32.dll import $signature = @' [DllImport("shell32.dll")] public extern static int SHSetKnownFolderPath(ref Guid folderId, uint flags, IntPtr token, [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.LPWStr)] string path); '@ # load the shell32 api function into powershell runtime $type = Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Add-Type ` -MemberDefinition $signature ` -Namespace 'KnownFolders' ` -Name 'SHSetKnownFolderPathPS' ` -PassThru } Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose ( 'Starting known folder path change operation' ) Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose ( "Target folder: $KnownFolder" ) Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose ( "New path: $Path" ) } process { # verify the destination path exists before attempting to move if (-not (Microsoft.PowerShell.Management\Test-Path ` -LiteralPath $Path ` -PathType Container)) { $msg = "Could not find folder path: $Path" Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Error -Message $msg throw [System.IO.DirectoryNotFoundException] $msg } # lookup the folder's unique guid from our hash table $knownFolderId = $knownFolders[$KnownFolder] Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose ( "Found folder GUID: $knownFolderId" ) if ($PSCmdlet.ShouldProcess($Path, "Set $KnownFolder location")) { # call shell32 api to perform the folder relocation # parameters: folderId (ref), flags (0), token (0), new path $result = $type::SHSetKnownFolderPath([ref]$knownFolderId, 0, 0, $Path) Microsoft.PowerShell.Utility\Write-Verbose ( "Shell API call completed with result: $result" ) return $result } } end { } } |