Windows 1709 “Dropped.” As in.. Dropped the Mic AWESOME ! Here’s your homework: 1. Start out by downloading the 1709 ADMX templates. https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/download/details.aspx?id=56121 1b. Optional, recommended: Immediately put them in the Central Store. I get this question a lot, but for me, there’s no DOWNSIDE to using these NOW, even if you have ZERO Windows 10 1709 machines “out there.” At least you can see “all that’s possible” in GP-land once you do this. Old video, still works as expected: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acYb2wQeL94 1b. REPLACE old ADMX files and KEEP any “overage.” Here is an answer to a FAQ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Op7hAvc5a0M 2. Check […]

Team: I keep getting asked “What do I think of DSC vs. Group Policy” a lot. So I decided to work closely with Jeffrey Snover, father of Powershell and DSC to come up with some clarifying points. As such, I have embedded them into my “Why Group Policy Is Not Dead Manifesto”. If you don’t want to re-read the whole thing , here are the updates for July 2017: Worked with Jeffrey Snover to provide DSC + Windows Client “Truths & Tenets”. (PLEASE use them in Powerpoints, etc. They are blessed as gospel.) Updated Nano server since the infrastructure pieces […]

If you don’t know who Mark Minasi is, then you don’t know Windows. Before I knew Mark personally, I would regularly encounter his books when I went from business to business during my old NT 3.5, 4.0 then Active Directory Consulting days. Then I read his articles in Windows NT magazine, which later had different names, and transformed into Windows IT Pro. Most memorable was “This Old Resource Kit”, which was often in the back of the magazine, and the article I always flipped to first. I first met Mark when I was doing some occasional writing for Windows NT […]

Just in time for my next GP class, Microsoft announced the end of road for the “Security Compliance Manager.” But they also say Hello to the Security Compliance Toolkit. Here’s the quick blog entry from my Microsoft pal Aaron Margosis: https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/secguide/2017/06/15/security-compliance-manager-scm-retired-new-tools-and-procedures/ So.. OK Got it. And I’m feverishly updating my GP Master Class to bring this new toolkit to you. What’s that? Don’t know what the Security Compliance Manager DID .. or how to make the MOST of the Security Compliance Toolkit for Group Policy? Well, NO PROBLEM .. Just COME to my Group Policy Master Class.. !! July 24-26 […]

Item 1 (in case yo missed it.): Which wacky NAS and SAN and whatever.. items STILL use SMB1 and.. well.. oh well.. sorry. 🙂 At least there’s this nice list! https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/filecab/2017/06/01/smb1-product-clearinghouse/ Item 2: Annnnd.. another awesome article on how to use Group Policy to SMB1.. by my pal and Microsoft employee and security expert.. Aaron Margosis ! https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/secguide/2017/06/15/disabling-smbv1-through-group-policy/