For more information about client-side extensions, refer to the section later in this chapter on the topic. Table 4-1 shows the client-side extension in addition to the files used within the GPT for that extension. When a setting is made for each client-side extension, the file in which it is stored within the GPT is also different. The different portions of the GPO make up the different client-side extensions supported in the GPO. Not all settings create the same type of files. The version number changes each time the GPO is modified.įigure 4-6 illustrates the default folders and files that exist in the GPT.Īs settings are created in the GPO, additional folders and files are created in the appropriate folder, depending on whether a Computer Configuration setting or a User Configuration setting is made.įigure 4-6 Newly created GPOs have only two default folders and one default file that make up the GPT in SYSVOL. Gpt.ini file Tracks the GPO version number. User folder Stores all GPO settings that are configured under the User Configuration node in the GPO. Machine folder Stores all GPO settings that are configured under the Computer Configuration node in the GPO. As settings within the GPO are added or removed, the associated GUID for the CSE controlling the setting is added or removed from this file. The GPE.ini file tracks the GUIDs for the CSEs that are referenced in the GPO. Group Policy folder Holds the GPE.ini file. This new folder is named the same as the GPO’s GUID, as you can see in Figure 4-5.įigure 4-5 All Group Policy templates are stored in a unique folder named after the GPO’s GUID they are all stored in the SYSVOL\Policies folder on each domain controller.ĭuring the creation of the GPT main folder, additional folders and files are created under this root folder.
When a GPO is initially created, a new folder is created under the %windir%\SYSVOL\sysvol\\Policies folder. The GPT is kept unique between GPOs by its GUID (globally unique identifier). The GPT is very dynamic, yet very simple.Įach GPO has a unique GPT where the files are stored. The GPT is not a single file or folder, but rather a suite of folders and files that are used to store and maintain the settings that are established in a GPO. The Group Policy template (GPT) is the portion of the GPO that is stored in the SYSVOL folder on the domain controllers. The details for the GPC are in the Active Directory properties that are associated with each GPC. The contents of the GPC are usually limited or blank. The GPC is the “glue” that ensures that all references, paths, network locations, Active Directory objects and paths, and so on are accounted for and correct. The second component is the Group Policy container (GPC). The information stored in the files is delivered to the target computers during Group Policy processing. The structure of the GPT can be very complex, because it is a dynamic set of folders and files. The first component is the GPT, which is responsible for storing the settings that are made in the GPO. However, they both perform very important duties for Group Policy and the storage of policy settings. If you were to look at the two parts separately, it would be hard to tell that they are related through Group Policy. These parts are not stored in the same location, they do not have the same structure, and they do not store the same information.
The GPO is made up of two independent parts. A GPO is not as straightforward as you might think.