Implementing Common Desktop Management Scenarios with Group Policy Management Console Abstract

  • Article

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

Group Policy is a rich and flexible technology providing the capability to efficiently manage a large number of computer and user accounts through a centralized, “one-to-many” model. With this flexibility comes the potential for complexity. For example, Group Policy in Windows Server 2003 exposes almost 1,000 configurable settings. This can initially appear a daunting task – how does the administrator assess the relative importance of these settings, and what features enabled by Group Policy might be considered when deploying a solution?

This Common Desktop Scenarios white paper provides a structured, tested, and consistent set of pre-packaged GPOs and associated documentation, with the goal of lowering the “barrier of entry” for those assessing Group Policy.

The scenarios described in this white paper provide a good starting point from which you can begin evaluating and understanding Group Policy. By implementing these scenarios in a test environment, you should be able to:

  • Quickly understand the scope of Group Policy and consider how to use a wide number of settings.

  • List some of the important solutions enabled by Group Policy.

  • Gain familiarity with some of the new functionality introduced with GPMC, particularly the backup/import of GPOs and Group Policy reports.

  • Reach conclusions about how to implement Group Policy in your production environment.

For more information about this topic, see Implementing Common Desktop Management Scenarios with the Group Policy Management Console.