Group Policy: Fundamentals, Security, and the Managed Desktop

Group Policy: Fundamentals, Security, and the Managed Desktop

by Jeremy Moskowitz
Released April 2010
Publisher(s): Sybex
ISBN: 9780470769805

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Book description

The Definitive Book on Group Policy - Updated for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012

Master all Group Policy functions of Windows, including Windows XP through Windows 8 and Windows Server 2003 through Windows Server 2012 in this latest edition of this bestselling book by Group Policy MVP Jeremy Moskowitz.

  • Covers the fundamentals and beyond of Group Policy, a collection of tools and settings that allow administrators to manage users and computers across a Windows Server enterprise

  • Reflects the very latest Windows Server technologies: Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8

  • Includes essential topics including Group Policy Preferences, security, printer management, and troubleshooting

  • Offers expert guidance and advice from renowned Group Policy expert and Microsoft Group Policy MVP Jeremy Moskowitz,

If you're a Windows Server network or IT administrator, make your life easier with Group Policy and this must-have guide.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Publisher's Note
  5. Dedication
  6. Acknowledgments
  7. About the Contributors
  8. Introduction
  9. Chapter 1: Group Policy Essentials
    1. Getting Ready to Use This Book
    2. Getting Started with Group Policy
    3. Understanding Local Group Policy
    4. Active Directory–Based Group Policy
    5. An Example of Group Policy Application
    6. Examining the Resultant Set of Policy
    7. Group Policy, Active Directory, and the GPMC
    8. Group Policy 101 and Active Directory
    9. Our Own Group Policy Examples
    10. Final Thoughts
  10. Chapter 2: Managing Group Policy with the GPMC
    1. Common Procedures with the GPMC
    2. Security Filtering and Delegation with the GPMC
    3. Performing RSoP Calculations with the GPMC
    4. Searching and Commenting Group Policy Objects and Policy Settings
    5. Starter GPOs
    6. Back Up and Restore for Group Policy
    7. GPMC At-a-Glance Icon View
    8. The GPMC At-a-Glance Compatibility Table
    9. Final Thoughts
  11. Chapter 3: Group Policy Processing Behavior Essentials
    1. Group Policy Processing Principles
    2. Policy Application via Remote Access, Slow Links, and after Hibernation
    3. Using Group Policy to Affect Group Policy
    4. Final Thoughts
  12. Chapter 4: Advanced Group Policy Processing
    1. WMI Filters: Fine-Tuning When and Where Group Policy Applies
    2. Group Policy Loopback Processing
    3. Group Policy with Cross-Forest Trusts
    4. Final Thoughts
  13. Chapter 5: Group Policy Preferences
    1. Powers of the Group Policy Preferences
    2. Group Policy Preferences Architecture and Installation Instructions
    3. Group Policy Preferences Concepts
    4. Group Policy Preferences Tips, Tricks, and Troubleshooting
    5. Final Thoughts
  14. Chapter 6: Managing Applications and Settings Using Group Policy
    1. Administrative Templates: A History and Policy vs. Preferences
    2. ADM vs. ADMX and ADML Files
    3. ADMX and ADML Files: What They Do and the Problems They Solve
    4. The Central Store
    5. Creating and Editing GPOs in a Mixed Environment
    6. ADM and ADMX Templates from Other Sources
    7. ADMX Migrator and ADMX Editor Tools
    8. PolicyPak Community Edition
    9. Final Thoughts
  15. Chapter 7: Troubleshooting Group Policy
    1. Under the Hood of Group Policy
    2. The Birth, Life, and Death of a GPO
    3. How Client Systems Get Group Policy Objects
    4. Why Isn’t Group Policy Applying?
    5. Client-Side Troubleshooting
    6. Advanced Group Policy Troubleshooting with Log Files
    7. Final Thoughts
  16. Chapter 8: Implementing Security with Group Policy
    1. The Two Default Group Policy Objects
    2. The Strange Life of Password Policy
    3. Inside Auditing With and Without Group Policy
    4. Restricted Groups
    5. Restrict Software: Software Restriction Policy and AppLocker
    6. Controlling User Account Control (UAC) with Group Policy
    7. Wireless (802.3) and Wired Network (802.11) Policies
    8. Configuring Windows Firewall with Group Policy
    9. Final Thoughts
  17. Chapter 9: Profiles: Local, Roaming, and Mandatory
    1. What Is a User Profile?
    2. Roaming Profiles
    3. Mandatory Profiles
    4. Final Thoughts
  18. Chapter 10: Implementing a Managed Desktop, Part 1: Redirected Folders, Offline Files, and the Synchronization Manager
    1. Overview of Change and Configuration Management
    2. Redirected Folders
    3. Offline Files and Synchronization
    4. Using Folder Redirection and Offline Files over Slow Links
    5. Final Thoughts
  19. Chapter 11: The Managed Desktop, Part 2: Software Deployment via Group Policy
    1. Group Policy Software Installation (GPSI) Overview
    2. Assigning and Publishing Applications
    3. Advanced Published or Assigned
    4. Default Group Policy Software Installation Properties
    5. Removing Applications
    6. Using Group Policy Software Installation over Slow Links
    7. Managing .MSI Packages and the Windows Installer
    8. Deploying Office 2007 and Office 2010 Using Group Policy
    9. Do You Need a “Big” Management Tool for Your Environment?
    10. Final Thoughts
  20. Chapter 12: Finishing Touches with Group Policy: Scripts, Internet Explorer, Hardware Control, Deploying Printers, and Shadow Copies
    1. Scripts: Logon, Logoff, Startup, and Shutdown
    2. Managing Internet Explorer with Group Policy
    3. Restricting Access to Hardware via Group Policy
    4. Assigning Printers via Group Policy
    5. Shadow Copies (aka Previous Versions)
    6. Final Thoughts for This Chapter and for the Book
  21. Appendix A
    1. Securing Workstations with Templates
    2. The Security Configuration Wizard
    3. Migrating Group Policy Objects between Domains
    4. Microsoft Tools Roundup
    5. Third-Party Vendors List
  22. Index
  23. Advertisement
  24. Bonus Chapter 1
    1. Using PowerShell to Do More with Group Policy
    2. Making PowerShell Even Easier with Commercial Tools
    3. Replacing Microsoft’s GPMC Scripts with PowerShell Equivalents
    4. Final Thoughts
  25. Bonus Chapter 2
    1. The Challenge of Group Policy Change Management
    2. Architecture and Installation of AGPM
    3. What Happens after AGPM is Installed?
    4. Understanding the AGPM Delegation Model
    5. AGPM Common Tasks
    6. AGPM Tasks with Multiple Admins
    7. Advanced Configuration and Troubleshooting of AGPM
    8. Final Thoughts
  26. Bonus Chapter 3
    1. Windows SteadyState Concepts and Installation
    2. Configuring Windows SteadyState (for Nondomain-Joined Computers)
    3. Configuring Windows SteadyState (for Domain-Joined Computers)
    4. Final Thoughts

Product information

  • Title: Group Policy: Fundamentals, Security, and the Managed Desktop
  • Author(s): Jeremy Moskowitz
  • Release date: April 2010
  • Publisher(s): Sybex
  • ISBN: 9780470769805