Fixing Software Installation policy setting problems

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

This topic explains issues related to deploying software using Group Policy software installation.

Software Installation CSE Background

A number of special issues affect Group Policy software installation. For example, network connectivity issues can disrupt access to the software installation packages. Software installation processing is never performed while the user is logged on because doing so could disrupt work and result in data loss. This has implications when Group Policy is configured to run asynchronously.

Software Installation is managed by the Software Installation CSE, which appears as the source Application Manager on the Policy Events tab in Group Policy Results reports. If you need additional logging information, enable verbose logging for the Software Installation CSE and Microsoft® Windows® Installer, as described under Troubleshooting Group Policy Using Log Files.

The Software Installation Diagnostics tool (addiag.exe) provides detailed information about the applications visible in Active Directory and installed for the current user, as well as general diagnostic information and related Event Log entries. It is available in the Windows 2000 Server Resource Kit.

Fixes for specific Software Installation policy setting issues

From the following list, choose the problem that best describes your situation, and then step through the suggested fix: