Ways to open Group Policy Object Editor

  • Article

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

Ways to open Group Policy Object Editor

You can open Group Policy Object Editor in several ways, depending on the action that you want to perform and the object to which you want to apply Group Policy. The following table lists the ways in which you can open Group Policy Object Editor.

To apply Group Policy to Do this

Local computer

In Group Policy Object Editor, edit the local Group Policy object, as described in Edit the local Group Policy object.

Another computer

Open the local Group Policy object that is stored on the network computer, as described in Open Group Policy as an MMC snap-in, and then browse to the network computer. You must have administrative rights on the network computer.

Site

Open Group Policy Object Editor, as described in Open Group Policy from Active Directory Sites and Services, and then link a Group Policy object to the intended site.

Domain

Open Group Policy Object Editor as described in Open Group Policy from Active Directory Users and Computers, and then link a Group Policy object to the intended domain.

Organizational unit

Open Group Policy Object Editor as described in Open Group Policy from Active Directory Users and Computers, and then link a Group Policy object to the intended organizational unit. You can also link a Group Policy object to an organizational unit that is higher in the Active Directory hierarchy, so that the organizational unit can inherit Group Policy settings.

Existing Group Policy object or set of Group Policy objects

Create and save your own custom Microsoft Management Console (MMC). For more information, see Microsoft Management Console.

You can also open Group Policy Object Editor by clicking Start, clicking Run, and then typing a command. Or, you can open Group Policy Object Editor at the command prompt in an MS-DOS window. The following table contains some examples of how you might open Group Policy Object Editor from the command line in different situations.

To edit At a command line, use this command-line syntax

The local Group Policy object on ThisComputerName

gpedit.msc /gpcomputer:"ThisComputerName"

The local Group Policy object on ThisComputerName (specified in the DNS style)

gpedit.msc /gpcomputer:"ThisComputerName.domain.com"

Group Policy objects stored in Active Directory

gpedit.msc /gpobject:"LDAP://CN={31B2F340-016D-11D2-945F-00C04FB984F9},CN=Policies,CN=System,DC=WingTipToys,DC=com"

Note

  • The GUID for the Group Policy object above is a fictitious example.

For information about other Group Policy command-line tools, see Managing Group Policy from the command line.