Default install location of windows system.

[decaylong]

Why the default install location is "C:\Users\name\AppData\Local\atom" , that's sh!t. Hope that can choosing by users.

[russlescai]

@decaylong download atom-windows.zip and copy it wherever you want...

[russlescai]

Where would you prefer it to be? Usually there are two options for installing - for all users, which requires administrator permissions and installs in program files, or this user, which installs it in the users profile directory (current behaviour).

[winstliu]

There are only two possible locations that Squirrel will install to at this time:

• %LOCALAPPDATA%\atom (the default which you experienced)
• %PROGRAMFILES%\atom (AtomSetup.exe --machine)

I'm not aware of any plans to allow custom install paths - @paulcbetts can you confirm?

See also #5259.

[decaylong]

ok，Im choose download zip file，and Im actully dont know about

• %PROGRAMFILES%\atom (AtomSetup.exe --machine)
  this option :) ty @50Wliu @russlescai

[anaisbetts]

Three are two possible locations that Squirrel will install to:

• %LocalAppData%\Atom - the default
• C:\ProgramData\Atom\USERNAME - the install location that is set when the first location cannot be written to / executed from, because of Group Policy

AtomSetup.exe --machine will just end up installing to one of these two places, but for all users (i.e. upon a new user logging in, we will proceed to install to that location)

Hope that can choosing by users.

Squirrel will never offer this choice, sorry!

[csnardi]

This is horrible. I have an SSD as my main drive and I typically want things on my regular HDD. How can I not choose where to install a program?

I'd even help contribute to change this.

[anaisbetts]

@hichris1234 Once the app is installed, you can move %LocalAppData%\Atom to wherever you want, then use mklink /D %LocalAppData%\Atom D:\Path\To\Where\You\Put\Atom and everything will work, even updates.

[csnardi]

But I shouldn't need to. Look at any program on Windows. Try to install it. In the installer, 99% of the time there's an option for "where do you want to install this program?" (I can think of only a few exceptions, such as Chrome). However, for Atom, there isn't.

[anaisbetts]

But I shouldn't need to. Look at any program on Windows. Try to install it. In the installer, 99% of the time there's an option for "where do you want to install this program?" (I can think of only a few exceptions, such as Chrome). However, for Atom, there isn't.

Don't care what 20 years of bad software has done in the past! Users shouldn't be asked arbitrary dumb questions like this, they double-click Setup and their program runs. That's it. Squirrel will never, ever, ever, ever, ever change this.

[csnardi]

Why should I need to symlink a directory in order to put it on my non-SSD drive? Or say I had partitions, and I wanted it to be on a specific partition? Or say my main partition was 99% full. What now? I need to download a zip in order to install it then? So much for a setup program that knows what I want.

This is a program made for developers. If developers can't be allowed to choose where their text editor installs, then that's insane! They're smart enough to know where they want it (I hope). Atom is made to be configurable. If the install location isn't configurable, I'm afraid Atom has failed at the very basic stages of configuration.

[Hrxn]

I agree with hichris here.

A program intended for developers is not the same as a program for a end-user audience.

The location of the installation is definitely not a 'dumb question'..

That is just bad practice.