Just recently one of our customers requested the Skype (Business version) Application to be packaged for software distribution, so I wondered what the status is these days with regard to locking down Skype with Group Policy. Well the results are sobering. Despite the fact that Skype is part of Microsoft since a while, there has [...]
Archive of posts tagged Group Policy
ReadTip: Group Policy Central Access Policies Extension Specification
If you are interested in Group Policy stuff, here’s a new Open Specifications Documentation for Group Policy: Central Access Policies Extension that appears to be something new coming with Windows 8. To be honest with you, I guess I need to read this doc a few more times, until I could really explain in detail [...]
Enable Windows Remote Management through Group Policy
In today’s post I am going to show you how to enable Windows Remote Management through Group Policy.If you haven’t heard of Windows Remote Management yet I recommend you read the articles I have referenced below. When enabled and configured Windows Remote Management provides an easy way for IT Administrators to remotely access and manage [...]
Windows 8 – New GPO stuff
I have just compared the C:\Windows\PolicyDefinitions folder on the Widows 8 preview build with a Windows 7 Enterprise build. And unless I missed one, the below ADMX/ADML files are new. AppxPackageManager.admx dam.admx DeviceCompat.admx EAIME.admx EarlyLaunchAM.admx EdgeUI.admx ExternalBoot.admx msched.admx ProximityCommon.admx srm-fci.admx UserState.admx WindowsHistoryVault.admx WinStoreUI.admx wlansvc.admx WPN.admx WPN.Provider.admx wwansvc.admx When you open the related ADML files stored [...]
Group Policy Settings for Microsoft Lync 2010 Client
Just in case you missed this one, Microsoft released documentation and an ADM template for the Microsoft Lync 2010 client. The following settings can be configured. Specify transport and server Enable strict DNS naming for server name Configure SIP security mode Configure SIP compression mode Prevent users from running Microsoft Lync Allow storage of user [...]
Taking Group Policy beyond what’s in the box – Part2
In my previous post I provided a brief overview of how PolicyPak can take you beyond default Group Policy management. In today’s post I am going to show you how easy it is to get PolicyPak up and running in your test environment. You can test PolicyPak on a local computer or within an Active [...]
Taking Group Policy beyond what’s in the box – Part1
Group Policy is a fundamental part of a managed Windows infrastructure. Using Group Policy Objects (GPO) allows IT administrators to configure and lock down clients and servers providing a standardized and secure environment. But despite the fact that Group Policy technology is around since the introduction of Windows 2000 its use seems to be limited [...]
How to disable Office Ribbon Items using Group Policy
Today I am going to show you how to disable a Ribbon Item using Group Policy, Okay, what’s the deal you might think, simply find the item within the Office GPO settings and enable it. Right,almost, it’s just that Microsoft didn’t list all possible settings within the Office ADMX/ADML file, probably because there are too [...]
All you need to know about Group Policy versioning
Ever wondered how the Group Policy versioning works? Below you find a number of articles and resources that provide a good insight how GPO versioning works. Group Policy Team Blog – Understanding the Domain based GPO version number TechNet – Displaying Version Properties of a Group Policy Object MSDN – Group Policy: Core Protocol Specification [...]
Get the latest version of the GPOTool.exe
The latest version of the GPOtool is the one that is included within the Microsoft Windows 2003 Resource kit. That’s what we all used to know. BUT hey I just figured out a few days ago that there is actually an official newer version around it’s included within the Microsoft Product Reports Utility. Here’s how [...]
