Chapter 9. Group Policies

Active Directory is a delivery component for group policy. Group policy provides the system administrator and architect with the ability to manage the desktop environment. With the growing requirement for different, yet standard desktop environments, organizations are able to create a system that provides a controlled desktop customization and a level of redundancy that eliminates the need for a time-consuming rebuild of the desktop. With proper planning and some insight into your future growth plans, architects and administrators are able to design an environment that balances the needs of a variety of users and yet permits administrative control and supportability for the administrator. The tools that can affect the organization most are group policies. Some questions about group policy we will answer in this chapter include: How are group policies implemented through the organizational unit (OU) structure? How can implementing group policies affect total cost of ownership (TCO)?