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Remote Installation Services Extension Technical Reference

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

Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003 use Group Policy settings to provide directory-based desktop configuration management. These Group Policy settings are stored in a Group Policy object (GPO). You can create and manage GPOs by using the Group Policy Object Editor.

General classes of Group Policy settings are implemented as extensions to the operating system, and can exist as two types of extensions:

  • Server-side extension (SSE). A Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in that is used for administration and configuration.

  • Client-side extension (CSE). An extension that runs on the client computer and interprets and applies the MMC-type settings to the client computer. The client computer is also known as the target computer.

The GPO settings are configured through the server-side extension, and are applied to individual computers and users by the Group Policy engine and the client-side extension (CSE). The Group Policy engine is the framework used to manage client side-extensions.

Remote Installation Services (RIS) is different from most other Group Policy extensions. RIS has no CSE or dynamic-link library (DLL) providing a CSE because RIS is used by the client before the client has an operating system installed.

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