Inside Windows® Server 2003

Group Policy Operational Overview

Computer policies have a lot in common with corporate policies. As anyone from the HR department will tell you, a corporate policy can only be effective if it meets a few guidelines:

• The policy must be in a form that can be clearly and simply communicated to the recipient.

• The action required by the policy must fit the capabilities of the recipient.

• The recipient must be reminded frequently of the policy so that observance does not lapse.

The discussion in the next few sections examines how group policies in Windows Server 2003 meet these guidelines.

Purpose of Group Policies

At their simplest level, group policies provide a way to efficiently manage large numbers of computers. An exact definition of “manage” can ...