View source for Using a Group Policy Preference

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 <code>\\server\users\''user_name''</code> 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 <code>Administrator</code> account.

* Open the <code>Group Policy Management Console</code>. If you are not having the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) installed on this computer, see [[Installing RSAT|Installing RSAT]].

* Right-click to your AD domain and select <code>Create a GPO in this domain, and Link it here</code>.

:[[Image:GPMC_Create_GPO.png]]

* Enter a name for the GPO, such as <code>Home folders on ''server''</code>. The new GPO is shown below the domain entry.

* Right-click to the newly-created GPO and select <code>Edit</code> to open the <code>Group Policy Management Editor</code>.

* Navigate to the <code>User Configuration</code> &rarr; <code>Preferences</code> &rarr; <code>Windows Settings</code> &rarr; <code>Drive Maps</code> entry.

* Right-click to the <code>Drive Maps</code> entry and select <code>New</code> &rarr; <code>Mapped Drive</code>.

* Set the following:
:* On the <code>General</code> tab:
::* Action: <code>Create</code>
::* Location: <code>\\server\users\%LogonUser%</code>
::: Windows automatically replaces the <code>%LogonUser%</code> variable when a user logs in
::* Select <code>Reconnect</code>
::* Label: Enter a string. For example: <code>Home</code>
::* Use: Select a drive letter the home folder is mapped to.
:* On the <code>Common</code> tab:
::* Select <code>Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)</code>

:[[Image:GPME_Home_Drive_Properties.png]]

:* Click <code>OK</code>.

* Close the <code>Group Policy Management Editor</code>. The GPOs are automatically saved on the <code>Sysvol</code> share on the domain controller (DC).

* Close the <code>Group Policy Management Console</code>.

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

[[Category:Group Policy Management]]