GPOADmin - Watcher Service (4377908)

Matthew, a strategic assistance consultant at Quest, discusses the GPOADmin's Watcher Service in a video. The Watcher Service is a unique software component that continuously monitors Active Directory for changes to version-controlled objects that occur outside of GPOADmin. When such changes are detected, they are marked as non-compliant within GPOADmin to ensure accurate tracking of object statuses.  Matthew illustrates this with a scenario where he directly edits a Group Policy Object (GPO) using GPMC, bypassing GPOADmin. The Watcher Service identifies this unauthorized modification and updates the GPO's compliance status. It creates a new version to reflect the change and provides options to either roll back to the previous version or incorporate the live change into GPOADmin.  The service does not track who made the changes, which is where auditing tools like Change Auditor come in. Notifications can be set up for compliance actions and unauthorized modifications, and there are options for automating responses to such changes. The Watcher Service operates without a user interface, and its activity can be monitored through the GPOADmin client or event logs.  Configuration settings for the Watcher Service can be adjusted via the registry, including how often it checks for changes. Overall, the Watcher Service is essential for maintaining compliance and managing GPOs effectively.