Active Administrator 8.7 - User Guide

Copying Group Policy objects between domains

Copying Group Policy objects between domains

One of the truly unique features of Active Administrator® is the ability to copy Group Policy objects between domains.

NOTE: Each GPO has a Globally Unique Identifier (GUID). If these are the same between domains, the current GPO is overwritten. The GUID displays in the details for the selected GPO.

To copy a Group Policy object to another domain

1	Select Group Policy | Group Policy Objects.

2	Select a domain controller.

3	Select a Group Policy.

4	Select More | Copy GPOS to domain.

5	To add additional GPOs to the list to be copied, click Add GPO, select a GPO, and click OK.

6	Click Add Domain.

7	Select the domain to receive the copy of the GPOs.

8	To copy security group filters, select the check box.

9

Click OK.

Comparing Group Policy objects

Comparing Group Policy objects

You can compare selected Group Policy objects to determine the differences. You can see what settings were changed, removed, or added.

To compare one or more group polices

1	Select Group Policy | Group Policy Objects.

2	Select a domain controller.

3	Select one or more group policies, and select

4	More | Compare.

The Summary tab lists the source GPO and all the targets used in the comparison. Each target GPO is listed on a separate tab compared to the source GPO.

To change the source GPO

a	Click Select Source GPO.

b	Click Yes to acknowledge that all comparisons will be removed.

c	Select the new source GPO.

d

Click OK.

To add target GPOs

a	Click Add Target GPO.

b	Select one or more GPOs to compare to the source GPO.

c	Click Add.

d

Click OK.

To remove a target GPO

a	Open the Summary tab.

b	Select a GPO.

c	Click Remove Target GPO.

5	When the comparison process is complete, a full report displays with the differences color-coded. Use the tool bar to examine the data.

 

Table 76. GPO comparison tool bar

Option	Description
Next	Go to the next difference.
Previous	Go to the previous difference.
Show	Filter the display to show All, Differences only, Changes only, Added only, Removed only, or Similarities only.
Find	Type characters in the Find box and the cursor automatically goes to the first occurrence.
Next	Go to the next line.
Color Options	Change the colors on the display. Default colors are yellow for changed, green for added, and red for removed.
View Printable	View and print the comparison.
Save	Save the comparison as a compare file (*.compare).

6	Close the window to exit the comparison.

Reporting on Group Policy objects

Reporting on Group Policy objects

Active Administrator can generate reports for administrators that provide relevant and useful information about Group Policy objects. The reports are available in a wide variety of formats and can be exported to popular formats for portability.

To run a report on a selected Group Policy objects

1	Select Group Policy | Group Policy Objects.

2	Select a domain controller.

3	Select a Group Policy, click Reports, and choose a report from the list.

 

Table 77. Group policy reports

Report	Description
Selected GPO Settings	Shows the Unique ID, number of revisions, created date, modified date, status of computer and user settings, Group Policy filters and Group Policy links for the selected Group Policy object in the selected domain.
Domain GPO Summary	Shows the Unique ID, number of revisions, created date, modified date, status of computer and user settings, Group Policy filters and Group Policy links for all Group Policy objects in the selected domain.
Selected GPO Affected Registry Keys	Shows the registry keys affected by the selected Group Policy object in the selected domain.

Managing links

Managing links

The Group Policy tree indicates which GPOs are linked and which are not. If the GPO is linked, the number of links displays next to the GPO.

NOTE: You also can manage links in the GPO by Container module. See Managing linked GPOs.

Topics 

•	Adding a link

To manage links

1	Select Group Policy | Group Policy Objects.

2	Select a domain controller.

3	Select a Group Policy with links.

4	Use the Links menu to manage the Group Policy links.

 

Table 78. Links menu

Option	Description
Add Link	Add a link to the selected Group Policy. See Adding a link.
Remove Link	Remove selected Group Policy links.
Refresh Links	Refresh the Group Policy links.
Link Properties	Open the properties for the selected Group Policy link.
Change No Override	Toggle the value in the No Override column. By default, Group Policy Objects at a lower level can override policy set at a higher level (No displays in the No Override column). To prevent other Group Policy Objects at a lower level from overriding the policy set in a Group Policy Object, change the No Override value to Yes.
Change Disabled	Toggle the value in the Disabled column. By default, links are enabled (No displays in the Disabled column). If you want to disable the Group Policy Link from being applied to the selected container, change the Disabled value to Yes.