TimeTo™ for Windows 10, 8, Windows 7, and Windows Vista users

TimeTo works perfectly under Windows 10, 8, Windows 7 (64-bit or 32-bit) and Windows Vista (64-bit or 32-bit). However, the higher security standards of these versions of Windows often demand that the way that TimeTo is installed has to be more complex than for earlier versions of Windows.

Background: TimeTo's typical single-user Windows (or Linux) installation is refreshingly simple, allowing you to contain the entire program and all its data files and settings in one folder with no registry settings. This allows an entire TimeTo installation to be moved to a USB drive, a new computer, or a new location on the same computer, by simply moving the TimeTo folder. Unfortunately, that kind of nimbleness goes against the best practice structure preferred by Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, and many corporate IT managers in general.

Depending upon your security setup in Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista, Windows may choose to relocate data files that programs try to store in any subfolder of the "Program Files" (or "Program Files (x86)") folder. In TimeTo's case what this means is that if you installed TimeTo to the "c:\Program Files\TimeTo" folder or "c:\Program Files (x86)\TimeTo" folder, then Windows, in the interests of security, behaves to TimeTo as if your schedule files are indeed in the "c:\Program Files\TimeTo" or "c:\Program Files (x86)\TimeTo" folder, but actually stores them in a "VirtualStore" folder... specifically, in the "c:\Users\[yourWindowsusername]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\TimeTo" folder (or on Windows 8, 64-bit Windows 7 or Vista, "c:\Users\[yourWindowsusername]\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files (x86)\TimeTo" folder). Thus, when you use a file browser such as Windows Explorer to look for your current schedule files in "c:\Program Files\TimeTo" or "c:\Program Files (x86)\TimeTo" folders, you won't see them there, which can be disconcerting. While this behavior of Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista may be attractive from a security perspective and/or mandated by the IT department where you work, for many users this is inconvenient or dangerous. Here are two ways to avoid this:

1. Don't install TimeTo in the "Program Files" or "Program Files (x86)" folder. Instead, use Windows Explorer to move your TimeTo installation entirely to some other folder that is not in the "Program Files" or "Program Files (x86)" folder structure (see the How To Move TimeTo To Another Computer Or Folder help topic for full details), or...
2. If you would like to keep your TimeTo program in the "Program Files" or "Program Files (x86)" folder, and wish to have your data stored elsewhere (which is the best practice that Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, and Windows Vista is seeking to enforce using their VirtualStore functionality), then leave the TimeTo program folder in the "Program Files" or "Program Files (x86)" folder, but move your TimeTo schedule information to any other folder you'd like. To move your TimeTo schedule information to any other folder you'd like, use the Backup command from TimeTo's File menu to copy your schedule information to a folder of your choice, then use the Open Schedule command from TimeTo's Multiuser menu to open that schedule, then choose the Make This Schedule The One Open at Launch command from the TimeTo's File menu. Your TimeTo program will now be in one folder and your data in another, which although more complex, will work perfectly fine, while satisfying the new Windows best practices.