Key Changes in Group Policy Architecture in WS 2008

Now that new Windows technology (in the dual garb of Windows Vista and the Windows 2008 Server) has arrived on the scene, many network planners are taking a closer look at some of the architectural changes that Microsoft has made to the Group Policy structure.

The underlying concept of Group Policy hasn't changed - it's still fundamentally a Great Big Network Registry Editor. Make a setting, and Group Policy enforces it for you from that point forward.

Having said that, the implementation of Group Policy has evolved in several useful and interesting ways:

• New status as an operating system Service
• Network Location Awareness
• Improved log file viewing
• New source file format (ADMX)
• New migration/editing utility
• Central-store management
• Dynamic source file loading
• Multi-language support
• Multiple local Group Policy Objects (GPOs)

I'll explore each of these key changes in future blog posts. 

See recent blog posts:

The Look and Feel of Server 2008

Meet Windows Server 2008 'Server Manager' -- your new management cockpit

Server Core - A minimalist approach to managing WS2008

How to get started with Server Core in WS2008

• Microsoft
• Global Knowledge
• Group Policy
• Microsoft training
• Windows Server 2008