Using a Group Policy Preference

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Using group policy preferences, you can assign settings to organizational units (OU) or to a domain. This enables you, for example, to automatically assign home folder paths to all users in the OU or domain. If you move the account to a different OU or domain, the setting is removed or updated. Using this way, you do not have to assign manually the setting to each user account.

To create a group policy object (GPO) for the domain that automatically assigns the \\server\users\user_name path as home folder to each user:

  • Log in to a computer using an account that is allowed you to edit group policies, such as the AD domain Administrator account.
  • Open the Group Policy Management Console. If you are not having the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) installed on this computer, see Installing RSAT.
  • Right-click to your AD domain and select Create a GPO in this domain, and Link it here.
GPMC Create GPO.png
  • Enter a name for the GPO, such as Home folders on server. The new GPO is shown below the domain entry.
  • Right-click to the newly-created GPO and select Edit to open the Group Policy Management Editor.
  • Navigate to the User ConfigurationPreferencesWindows SettingsDrive Maps entry.
  • Right-click to the Drive Maps entry and select NewMapped Drive.
  • Set the following:
  • On the General tab:
  • Action: Create
  • Location: \\server\users\%LogonUser%
Windows automatically replaces the %LogonUser% variable when a user logs in
  • Select Reconnect
  • Label: Enter a string. For example: Home
  • Use: Select a drive letter the home folder is mapped to.
  • On the Common tab:
  • Select Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)
GPME Home Drive Properties.png
  • Click OK.
  • Close the Group Policy Management Editor. The GPOs are automatically saved on the Sysvol share on the domain controller (DC).
  • Close the Group Policy Management Console.

The policy is applied to users in the OU or domain, the policy is assigned to, during the next log in.