An Overview of Basic and Advanced Options

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The following usage options can serve basic user data management requirements:

  • Provide users with private network shares and map their My Documents folder to this share.

  • Include the desktop as part of this network share so that documents saved to the desktop are also saved to the network share.

  • Provide users with public network shares. This share can serve a single user or a workgroup.

  • Set quotas on shares, especially on per-user shares.

  • Provide backup and restore services for shares, particularly the per-user shares.

  • Enable offline folders on shares that include private data.

  • Enable Synchronization Manager for the common data types.

For advanced user data management, consider implementing the following features:

  • Implement Roaming User Profiles for users who use more than one local computer.

  • Ensure that when a roaming user leaves a computer, the roaming user profile and cache are cleared.

For basic settings management, consider providing the following options:

  • Establish a basic policy for desktop or shell control.

  • Establish basic policy for security control (see "Planning for Network Security" in this book).

  • Define your logon scripts.

  • Do not apply more than five or six Group Policy objects to a given user and computer. (For more information about using and apply Group Policy to manage client configurations, see "Defining Client Administration and Configuration Standards" in this book.)

  • For users of Roaming User Profiles, define a standard default user profile for new users. This default profile exists on the server and is copied to the computer the first time the user logs on.

For advanced settings management, consider the following options:

  • Configure Group Policy to severely restrict access to system file locations.

  • Configure Group Policy to prevent users from running unapproved software.

For basic software installation and maintenance, consider using the following options:

  • Allow users to use Add/Remove Programs through an application's life cycle.

  • Prevent users from installing software using a CD.

  • Publish existing Windows Installer–based applications in "partial installation/install on demand" form.

  • Use transforms to modify package behavior.

  • Publish or assign operating system updates.

  • Use Group Policy to upgrade applications.

For advanced software installation and maintenance, consider using the following options:

  • Create Dfs-enabled distribution points.

  • Use Systems Management Server to manage Dfs distribution points.

The following sections illustrate change and configuration management plans for several different types of users.