Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Group Policy settings can apply to two types of Active Directory objects: User objects
and Computer objects. Because both users and computers can be placed into groups and
organized within OUs, this type of configuration simplifies the management of hundreds,
or even thousands, of computers.
The main options you can configure within user and computer group policies are as follows:
Software Settings The Software Settings options apply to specific applications and
software that might be installed on the computer. System administrators can use these
settings to make new applications available to end users and to control the default
configuration for these applications.
Windows Settings The Windows Settings options allow system administrators to
customize the behavior of the Windows operating system. The specific options that are
available here are divided into two types: user and computer. User-specific settings let you
configure Internet Explorer (including the default home page and other settings). Computer
settings include security options, such as Account Policy and Event Log options.
Administrative Templates Administrative templates are used to configure user
and computer settings further. In addition to the default options available, system
administrators can create their own administrative templates with custom options.
Group Policy Preferences The Windows Server 2012 R2 operating system includes Group
Policy preferences (GPPs) , which give you more than 20 new Group Policy extensions.
These extensions, in turn, give you a vast range of configurable settings within a Group
Policy object. Included in the new Group Policy preference extensions are settings for folder
options, mapped drives, printers, the registry, local users and groups, scheduled tasks,
services, and the Start menu.
Besides providing easier management, Group Policy preferences give an administrator the
ability to deploy settings for client computers without restricting the users from changing
the settings. This gives an administrator the flexibility needed to decide which settings to
enforce and which not to enforce.
Figure 6.1 shows some of the options you can configure with Group Policy.
ADMX Central Store Another consideration in GPO settings is whether to set up an
ADMX Central Store . GPO administrative template files are saved as ADMX ( .admx )
files and AMXL ( .amxl ) for the supported languages. To get the most benefit out of using
administrative templates, you should create an ADMX Central Store.
You create the Central Store in the SYSVOL folder on a domain controller. The Central Store
is a repository for all of your administrative templates, and the Group Policy tools check it.
The Group Policy tools then use any ADMX files that they find in the Central Store. These
files then replicate to all domain controllers in the domain.
If you want your clients to be able to edit domain-based GPOs by using the ADMX files
that are stored in the ADMX Central Store, you must be using Windows Vista, Windows 7,
Windows 8, Server 2008, Server 2008 R2, Server 2012, or Server 2012 R2.
Security Template Security templates are used to configure security settings through a
GPO. Some of the security settings that can be configured are settings for account policies,
local policies, event logs, restricted groups, system services, and the registry.
Search WWH ::




Custom Search