Recently, I wrote about an annoying issue that I encountered during a Windows 10 VDI deployment: the roaming of the AppData\Local folder breaks the Start Menu of Windows 10 Enterprise. After extensive research and testing, I believe I have found a solution to this problem. However, I cannot confirm whether this is a workaround, a hack, or an actual solution, as it is dependent on various factors.

During my tests, I tried to determine why the TileDataLayer breaks when roaming is enabled. As previously mentioned, deleting the TileDataLayer folder resolves the issue, but the folder is recreated during the next logon, causing the Start menu to stop working again. To address this, I added a path for “Files and folders excluded from roaming” in the Group Policy Objectives (GPO) setting. This allowed me to exclude specific folders, including the TileDataLayer, from being roamed.

After some research, I stumbled upon a VMware Communities thread where a user named oliober had similar issues with Linked Clones and Persistent mode in Windows 10 (1607). To solve the problem, he only roamed a few folders, including the TileDataLayer folder, but not the entire AppData\Local folder. This approach seemed to work for him, and I decided to try it as well.

To achieve this, you must enable roaming for AppData\Local, but then exclude AppData\Local from the exclusion list of the GPO setting. Instead, you should add only the necessary folders to the exclusion list. This may seem counterintuitive, but it appears to work.

Please note that this solution is specific to Windows 10 version 1607 and may not work for newer versions of the operating system. Microsoft deprecated TileDataLayer in Windows 10 version 1703, so a different solution will be required for these newer builds. However, if you are using the Long Term Service Branch, this solution will work for the next 10 years.

I am very interested in receiving feedback on this issue and any potential solutions. Please leave a comment with your results to help others who may encounter similar problems. While I cannot confirm whether this is a true solution or not, it has worked for me and others so far.