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GPOADmin 5.17 - User Guide

Introducing Quest GPOADmin Configuring GPOADmin Using GPOADmin
Connecting to the Version Control system Navigating the GPOADmin console Search folders Accessing the GPMC extension Configuring user preferences Working with the live environment Working with controlled objects (version control root)
Creating a custom container hierarchy Selecting security, levels of approval, and notification options Viewing the differences between objects Copying/pasting objects Proposing the creation of controlled objects Merging GPOs Restoring an object to a previous version Restoring links to a previous version Managing your links with search and replace Linking GPOs to multiple Scopes of Management Managing compliance issues automatically with remediation rules Validating GPOs Managing GPO revisions with lineage Setting when users can modify objects Working with registered objects Working with available objects Working with checked out objects Working with objects pending approval and deployment
Checking compliance Editing objects Synchronizing GPOs Exporting and importing
Creating Reports Appendix: Windows PowerShell Commands Appendix: GPOADmin Event Log Appendix: GPOADmin Backup and Recovery Procedures Appendix: Customizing your workflow Appendix: GPOADmin Silent Installation Commands Appendix: Configuring Gmail for Notifications Appendix: Registering GPOADmin for Office 365 Exchange Online Appendix: GPOADmin with SQL Replication About Us

Deleting version history

As you progress an object through the Version Control workflow, GPOADmin keeps an audit trail, as well as a history of all minor and major versions. If you no longer need to keep this history, you can selectively delete any of the versions except your last backup. Only the object settings are deleted; the audit trail is preserved, and you still see the entry in the object history. Deletions are permanent.

If required, you can select to remove the user account associated with the action from the view.

* 
NOTE: When a new version is created, an internal record of the action that generated the version is kept—including the user that performed the action, the date and a label if one was created. You may wish to view this audit trail in a History report before deciding which versions you want to delete. For more information, see Historical Settings Reports .
To delete version history in the console
1
Expand the Version Control Root node, and the required container.
2
Right-click an object and select Show History.
3
In the History dialog box, select a version from the list. (Press CTRL and click to select multiple versions.)

You can only delete major and minor versions. If you have Show All Events enabled, events that have occurred between versions cannot be deleted, as there are no settings associated with them.
4
Right-click and then select:
Delete: This will delete the backup associated with the action.
Delete and Clear Account: This deletes the backup and clears the account name associated with the action.
5
In the confirmation dialog box, click OK.
After you delete a version history, it remains on the list, but is unavailable.
* 
NOTE: Once you have deleted version history, it cannot be undone.
To delete version history of a GPO using the GPMC Extension
1
Select the GPO and click Show History.
2
In the bottom pane, select a version. (Press CTRL and click to select multiple versions.)
You can only delete major and minor versions. Events that have occurred between versions cannot be deleted, as there are no settings associated with them.
3
Select Delete to remove the backup associated with the action.
-OR-
Delete and Clear Account to remove the backup and clear the account name associated with the action.
4
In the confirmation dialog box, click OK.

Clearing account names in version history

If required, you can remove the user account associated with a backup version from the historical view.

To clear the account name
1
Expand the Version Control Root node, and the required container.
2
Right-click an object and select Show History.
3
In the History dialog box, select a version from the list. (Press CTRL and click to select multiple versions.)
4
Right-click and then select Clear Account.
5
In the confirmation dialog box, click OK.
To clear the account name associated with an action using the GPMC Extension
1
Select the GPO and click Show History.
2
In the bottom pane, select a version. (Press CTRL and click to select multiple versions.)
3
Right-click and then select Clear Account.
4
In the confirmation dialog box, click OK.

Viewing and editing object properties

You can easily view and edit the details for the current version of an object in the Version Control system including the security, notification settings, keywords, approvals, lineage, remediation options, as well as the object’s location within version control.

You can also view important information about changes made in the live environment on the Change Auditor tab, if you have a supported version of Change Auditor. See the Release Notes for a complete list of supported versions.

* 
NOTE: Users with the appropriate permission can alter the security settings. For more information, see Configuring role-based delegation .
To view the properties using the GPOADmin console
1
Expand the Version Control Root node, and the required container.
2
Right-click the required object and select Properties.
3
From the Properties dialog box, click the required tab to see the associated information.
 
Table 14. Options
Option
Description

General

 

View the domain, user, the creation and modification dates, the version, the unique ID, location in version control, and the GPO status. From here you can also see and, if required, change the user responsible for an object’s management (Managed By property).

Links (From the GPO Properties page)

Edit the link to Scopes of Management.

NOTE: You must have the Link permission to add or edit links.

Lineage

Manage GPO revisions by selecting a specific GPO to revert to when a rollback is performed.

Security

Delegate responsibilities over the object.

Approvals

Approval workflows for object creation, deletion, or modification.

NOTE: Users who have the Enable / Disable Approvals right can enable and disable approvals for containers or specific objects.
NOTE: Approvals are inherited from the parent unless manually set on the object. (Explicitly applied settings take precedence over inheritance.)

By default, approvals are processed in the order listed on the Approvals tab in the Container or Item Properties.

NOTE: Click the Override inherited work flow check box if you want the approvals process for a container to be different from its top level container.

Notifications

Select the actions to be notified on.

Remediation

Manage which action will occur automatically when an object becomes non-complaint due to an edit or deletion performed outside of GPOADmin.

Change Window

Set the day and time when users can make modifications to objects.

Attestation

Set the date range limit for a GPO deployment and configure the notification message that is sent when the limit is surpassed

The version control system is polled every 24 hours to identify GPOs that have not been deployed within the specified date range. Once identified, the attestation email notification is sent to the account that is designated as its manager (Managed By property).

Keywords

View all the keywords for a given object. For here you can also, add and remove keywords as required.

When a new keyword is entered it is saved into a primary list of keywords. This list is displayed for each object. The checkboxes indicate which keywords are applied to each object.

Group Policy Inheritance

View the group policy inheritance for the selected Scope of Management. including the location where they are linked and the order in which they will be applied.

Change Auditor

View changes made to objects in the live environment. You can move the columns and sort by columns.

NOTE: You must have a supported version of Change Auditor installed. See the Release Notes for a complete list of supported versions.
You can also view and save a report of changes. For information, see Change Auditor Report .

Naming Standards

NOTE: Items with a backslash or forward slash in the name will not manageable in PowerShell.
NOTE: Items with an astrix in the name must inclose the name in single quotes and escape the astrix using the backtick character (character below the tilde). For example:

Item Name: Test *

Escaped: 'Test `*'

Select to enforce naming conventions for GPOs and WMI filters.

Enter the rule, a test name, and click Verify to ensure its accuracy.

NOTE: Any existing naming conventions previously set, will be migrated to the Version Control root container during an upgrade.

 

Example rule:

^[a-z]+[0-9]+_GPO$

 

•
The caret character (^) means the start of the line.
•
The grouping [a-z]+ means at least one or more lower-case characters between a and z.
•
The grouping [0-9]+ means at least one or more numeric characters between 0 and 9.
•
The dollar sign character ($) means the end of the line.

 

This rule states that from the start of the line there must be at least one or more lower-case characters immediately followed by at least one or more numeric characters immediately followed by the literal string “_GPO” and nothing after that.

 

a1_GPO passes

abc123_GPO passes

_a1_GPO fails

a1_GPO_ fails

A1_GPO fails

A1_gpo fails

To view the properties using the GPMC Extension
1
Right-click the GPO and select Properties.
2
From the Properties dialog box, click the required tab to see the associated information.
 
Table 15. Options
Option
Description

General

 

View the domain, user, the creation and modification dates, the version, the unique ID, location in version control, and the GPO status. From here you can also see and, if required, change the user responsible for an object’s management (Managed By property).

Links (From the GPO Properties page)

Edit the link to Scopes of Management.

NOTE: You must have the Link permission to add or edit links.

Lineage

Manage GPO revisions by selecting a specific GPO to revert to when a rollback is performed.

Security

Delegate responsibilities over the object.

Approvals

Number of required approvers for object creation, deletion, or modification.

NOTE: Users who have the Enable / Disable Approvals right can enable and disable approvals for containers or specific objects. If approvals are enabled but the parents value is disabled, then inheritance stops at the parent. If approvals are disabled, then the workflow goes directly from check-in to deploy.

Notifications

Select the actions to be notified on.

Remediation

Manage which action will occur automatically when an object becomes non-complaint due to an edit or deletion performed outside of GPOADmin.

Keywords

View all the keywords for a given object. For here you can also, add and remove keywords as required.

When a new keyword is entered it is saved into a primary list of keywords. This list is displayed for each object. The checkboxes indicate which keywords are applied to each object.

Change Auditor

View changes made to objects in the live environment. You can move the columns and sort by columns.

NOTE: You must have a supported version of Change Auditor installed. See the Release Notes for a complete list of supported versions.
NOTE: You can also view and save a report of changes. For information, see Change Auditor Report .

Applying keywords on containers

To ease the management of containers, you can now set keywords on them, locate them in the Search Folders based on those keywords, and edit their properties once they have been found.

* 
NOTE: This option is only available for SQL configuration stores.
To set a keyword on a container:
1
Expand the Version Control Root node, and the required container.
2
Right-click the required object and select Properties.
3
From the Properties dialog box, click the Keywords tab.
4
Add and remove keywords as needed.
5
If required, you can block the inheritance on child containers and objects.
6
Click Apply to save the changes and close the dialog.
To search for containers based off applied keywords:
1
Expand Search Folders and open the Containers folder.
2
To filter the view, type the keywords to search or select the keywords from the drop down list, and click Search.
3
Right-click the required container and select Properties to view and edit the details for the current version of the container in the Version Control system.
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