Idiots Guide to WMI required

[ajames]

I am finally introducing 64bit into our environment, and going with windows 8.1. I have two GPO's one for staff and one for students, both have folder redirection to a shared folder on the server that give them there desktop icons, each have a different share as they utilise different icons. I have been reading that a wmi filter is the best option but can't find any good instructions to follow as to how to achieve this.

 

I would assume that I need to create a share for 32bit icons and one for 64 bits icons, then what I want is for example a staff member logs in, the system detects its 32 or 64 and gives them the relevant desktop

 

Is that possible or is there another way of achieving this, if someone could provide good clear instruction it would probably (From what I have been reading) help a lot of people out.

[Norphy]

Creating a WMI filter to detect a 32 or 64 bit OS is simple enough

 

Open your GPMC, go to WMI filters. Right click and select New

 

Give the filter an appropriate name and description if you want one. Press the Add button.

 

Leave Namespace as root\CIMv2

 

In the query box, type

select * from Win32_OperatingSystem where OSArchitecture = "32-Bit"

for the 32 bit filter. Repeat the process but put

select * from Win32_OperatingSystem where OSArchitecture = "64-Bit"

for the 64 bit filter. When you create a GPO, select it in GPMC and at the bottom of the screen is a pulldown box to select the WMI filter,

[ajames]

Thanks for the quick response there, does that mean then I need to have a 32bit staff GPO and a 64bit Staff gpo, linked to the relevant wmi filter, otherwise I will not be able to have separate redirected folders for the icons.

[Norphy]

If that's how you want to do things, yes.

 

If you push out shortcuts using group policy preferences you can use item-level targeting instead.

[ajames]

That's the ticket, that worked a treat, thanks very much