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Set Group Policy for client installation options

  • Article

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To set Group Policy for client installation options

  1. Open Active Directory Users and Computers.

  2. In the console tree, right-click the domain or the applicable organizational unit.

    Where?

    • Active Directory Users and Computers/Applicable domain/Applicable organizational unit (such as Computers)

  3. Click Properties, and then click the Group Policy tab.

  4. In the Group Policy dialog box, click the Group Policy object, and then click Edit to start Group Policy.

  5. Click User Configuration, click Windows Settings, and then click Remote Installation Services.

  6. Double-click the Choice Options object, and then select from among the following Client Installation Wizard choices:

    • Automatic Setup

      Use this option if you want to predefine the computer name and a location within Active Directory for the client computer accounts. (Another alternative is prestaging client computer accounts.) For more information about computer names and the options for predefining them, or for information about prestaging, see Related Topics.

    • Custom Setup

      Use this option to allow users to define a unique name for this computer and specify where the computer account will be created within Active Directory.

    • Restart Setup

      This option restarts an operating system installation attempt if it fails prior to completion.

    • Tools

      This option gives users the ability to access tools, including the Recovery Console, from the Client Installation Wizard. For more information about maintenance and troubleshooting tools and options for RIS, see Related Topics.

  7. Click one of the following Group Policy options for each of the Client Installation Wizard choices selected in the previous step:

    • Enabled

      Use this option to offer the installation option to users to whom this policy applies.

    • Disabled

      If this option is set for a specific installation option, users affected by this policy cannot access that installation option within the Client Installation Wizard.

    • Not Configured

      Use this policy to accept the policy settings of the parent container. For example, if the administrator for the entire domain has set Group Policy that is specific to Remote Installation Services, and the administrator of this container has chosen the Not Configured option, the policy that is set on the domain is applied to all users who are affected by that policy.

  8. In the Choice Options Properties dialog box, click OK to apply your changes.

  9. Close Group Policy, and then, in the Group Policy dialog box, click OK.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Domain Admins group or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • This topic does not apply to Windows Server 2003, Web Edition.

  • To open Active Directory Users and Computers, click Start, click Run, type dsa.msc, and then click OK. For information about creating a shortcut so you can easily open Active Directory Users and Computers with runas, see Related Topics.

  • The Not Configured installation choice is the default setting.

  • Automatic Setup is the default display option for users of client computers during the Client Installation Wizard process.

  • The security settings that have been set on a domain controller through Group Policy within the Active Directory Users and Computers console might not take effect for the defined user or group accounts for up to eight hours.

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Working with MMC console files
Set permissions required by RIS users who use prestaged client computers
Controlling client installations through Group Policy
Maintenance and troubleshooting tools and options
Computer names
Group Policy (pre-GPMC)
Group Policy overview
Create a shortcut using the runas command