A corrupted NTUSER.DAT file will also cause the symptom - simply renaming it within windows, and rebooting, allows windows to rebuild the file and the Key
Simple once you know how!!
I read that your client's problem is now fixed. Very well done![]()
Unfortunately not - the NTUSER.DAT file is not regenerated on a reboot

The folder only contains the DAT file, and the LOG1 and LOG2 files - no regtrans files, and no LOG file

I tested a similar configuration in my VM, by deleting from RE, but that regenerated fine.
I suspect that somewhere, something is pulling in the wrong (corrupted) NTUSER.DAT file.
There is a reference somewhere that I found that suggests that if the registry is unable to save the updated to the normal place, it will fall back to somewhere in the Users hierarchy - the question then is how is the fall-back reversed, or is it supposed to test the default location every time?
My Computer
System One
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- Manufacturer/Model
- Acer Aspire 8930G