Defining Client Administration and Configuration Standards
Defining Client Administration and Configuration Standards |
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How you use Group Policy to administer clients is determined by the service standards and goals that you have set.
In a highly managed environment, your service level agreement might include guidelines for providing fast troubleshooting (for example, response within 15 minutes), rapid equipment replacement in case of failure, and frequent (probably daily) data backups. In addition, highly managed support would also include advanced features such as Group Policy–based user or computer environments, software installation and maintenance, offline folders, and custom scripts for the logon, logoff, startup, and shutdown processes.
Less managed environments will probably have longer lead times for support and equipment replacement, and provide only a subset of the services offered in a highly managed environment.
Also, users in an unmanaged environment provide their own troubleshooting, replace their own equipment, back up their own data, and take minimal advantage of Group Policy–based functionality.
The following sections describe the different levels and quality of support that you can provide using Microsoft® Windows NT® version 4.0 System Policy, Windows 2000 Professional local Group Policy, and Windows 2000 Active Directory–based Group Policy. With this knowledge, you will be able delegate control over key client support tasks at the most effective level for your organization.