Server 2008 and GPO for Windows 8.1

[baztech]

I am a bit new to Group Policies and I have inherited a Server 2008. We will have Win 8.1 clients and I need to update the GPO's... can this be done on Server 2008? Do I need something special to get the Win 8.1 new polices?

[nev104]

Hi sletts02,

 

This should be what you are looking for,

 

Add 2012/win8/8.1 group policy extensions to 2008 R2 domain - Spiceworks

 

From this you should just add RSAT tools to a windows 8.1 machine and manage group policy from that machine.

[3s-gtech]

Is your Server on 2008 R1 or 2008 R2 (big difference)?

 

You can host and manage many of the GPOs for 8.1 from Server 2008, but certainly not all (they just don't appear in the console). As mentioned, you'll either need RSAT on an 8.1 machine or a Server 2012 R2 machine with Group Policy Management installed (doesn't need to be a DC).

[baztech]

Ahhh RSAT seems to be the trick! I've got 2008 R1

 

But from using MDT / PDQ Deploy / WDS I seem to get most things done. Now with RSAT I can update our 8.1's to lock them down and get our bewildering IT under control.

 

Thank you for the help - it's really appreciated.

[baztech]

One thought, are those changes made on the Windows 8.1 computer stored in on the server 2008? i.e. If Windows 8.1 machine is formatted, are all the changes lost? Or if another Win 8.1 computer is used to update the GP will the changes be reflected on it too?

[3s-gtech]

The Windows 8.1 PC is just used to view and edit the policies in the sysvol, it won't hold them (they're stored in domain.name\sysvol on your DCs). You could use any Windows 8.1 PC with RSAT to edit them, same as using any Server 2012 machine with GPMC to do so. Think of it like editing a website via SCP - you access and change the files using your PC, but the files themselves are remote.