Steady State/Group Policy

[The Quicken]

Wondering how/if I can set a PC to be completely locked down, and then just configure access to what I want. For example, say I only want to allow access to web browsing and that's it, as opposed to going though the entire GP and configuring everything, I want a quick way to configure/lock down all functions at once and then just go and 'unlock' a select few functions....

[JD]

I'm fairly sure you'd have to go through each and every setting and configure it accordingly. There might be pre-made GPO's online that you could download though? Not sure. Possibly 3rd party utilities as well.

Maybe this: Download: Group Policy Common Scenarios Using GPMC - Microsoft Download Center - Download Details but it looks pretty old.

And Steady State (if I recall), doesn't actually prevent you from doing anything, but rather wipes all data upon reboot. Similar to Deep Freeze. Basically restores an image to the computer whenever it reboots so it cannot be tempered with.

[The Quicken]

Originally Posted by JD

I'm fairly sure you'd have to go through each and every setting and configure it accordingly. There might be pre-made GPO's online that you could download though? Not sure. Possibly 3rd party utilities as well.

Maybe this: Download: Group Policy Common Scenarios Using GPMC - Microsoft Download Center - Download Details but it looks pretty old.

And Steady State (if I recall), doesn't actually prevent you from doing anything, but rather wipes all data upon reboot. Similar to Deep Freeze. Basically restores an image to the computer whenever it reboots so it cannot be tempered with.

Deep Freeze yes, but I'm still not sure about Steady State --

Creating a Steady State by Using Microsoft Technologies
Shared computers present unique challenges. Microsoft® publishes software that gives users a great degree of flexibility, allowing them to customize their experiences by configuring their computers’ settings. In shared-computer scenarios, however, administrators want to limit users’ ability to change settings, particularly settings that would affect the health of the computer or the experience of other users. Privacy and consistency are very important in shared-computer scenarios.
Windows® SteadyState™ is a free tool from Microsoft that helps make shared computers easier to set up and manage. In scenarios where users share computers (for example, in kiosks, schools, libraries, or Internet cafes). Windows SteadyState helps make those computers more reliable, providing a more consistent experience for users. Additionally, it helps defend shared computers from unauthorized changes and restricts users from changing system settings or files.

[JD]

Yeah, not sure either as I've never played with it, however the examples they list are all scenarios where you'd want it to revert back to a "base" image. The computers at my college did that - once you logged off it restarted and wiped everything. Obviously this made bootup/login awfully slow though. However I'm fairly sure they weren't using SteadyState as oddly they seem to opt out of using any MS products for deployment/management.

[The Quicken]

It's my understanding that Steady State is a free MS program availiable for OS's earlier than Win7, with Win7 the S.S. is replaced by GP.