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This article ill show you how To Track Windows Group Policy Changes. Within the realm of Windows, the Group Policy feature makes it possible for network administrators to delegate particular configurations to particular groups of users or computers. After that, those settings are implemented every time a user from the group logs into a computer connected to a network or every time a computer from the group is started. The Local Group Policy is a slightly more limited version that only applies settings to a local computer or users, or even a group of local users. This policy can also be applied to a local user group.
In the past, we have covered a variety of tips and tricks that make use of Local Group Policy in order to change settings that are inaccessible in any other location, save for through the editing of the Windows Registry. You might find it helpful to see all the changes you’ve made in one place, rather than digging through the Local Group Policy Editor, if you have a habit of changing the settings of the Local Group Policy. This is especially true if you frequently change the settings. A Group Policy administration system might begin with ten settings and eventually have hundreds of them.
How many of the configurations that were made can be considered reasonable? How many settings are applied to all users, even though in theory some users might not require some of those settings to be applied to them? How many settings are configured, but the ones that are no longer necessary are never removed? Auditing Group Policy can be done through Microsoft and other third-party solutions such as AGMP (Advanced Group Policy Management) and Netwrix. All of these solutions offer some form of this capability. It is strongly suggested that you make use of these if you have the opportunity to do so; however, there is also a method available for those of you who do not have access to such tools. Here how To Track Windows Group Policy Changes.
What Are Windows Group Policies?
Windows Group Policies are a set of rules that can be used to manage how computers and people on a network act. Group Policies can be used to set many things, such as user preferences, security settings, and how software is installed. The Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) is used to make and manage group policies. It is possible for administrators to make and change Group Policy Objects (GPOs) with the GPMC.
GPOs are groups of Group Policy settings that can be used on users and computers. Group Policies can be used on a single computer or on a network of computers. Things in Active Directory, like sites, domains, and organizational units (OUs), can also be linked to group policies. This lets network administrators control the Group Policies that all computers and users on their network follow from one place.
How To Track Windows Group Policy Changes
- Open the Event Viewer.
- Expand the Windows Logs node.
- Expand the Security node.
- Click the Directory Service Changes log.
- In the right pane, look for events with the Event ID 5136. These events indicate that Group Policy changes have occurred.
Why is it important to track Group Policy changes?
- Security: Monitoring Group Policy changes helps ensure the security of your network. Unauthorized changes to Group Policies can result in security vulnerabilities, such as granting excessive permissions to users or allowing unintended access to sensitive resources. By tracking changes, you can quickly identify and address security breaches or policy misconfigurations.
- Compliance: Many organizations are subject to regulatory requirements and compliance standards that mandate tracking and auditing of configuration changes, including Group Policy changes. Failing to monitor and document these changes can lead to compliance violations and legal issues.
- Troubleshooting: When issues arise within your network, whether related to user access, application deployment, or system configurations, having a record of Group Policy changes can be invaluable for troubleshooting. You can pinpoint when a change was made and what specific policies were modified, making it easier to identify the cause of problems and revert to a known-good configuration if needed.
- Change Management: Effective change management is essential for maintaining stability and reliability in an IT environment. By tracking Group Policy changes, IT administrators can follow a structured change management process, including requesting, reviewing, approving, and documenting changes. This ensures that modifications are made intentionally and with proper oversight.
- Historical Reference: Group Policy changes may have a long-term impact on your network’s performance and security. Keeping a historical record of these changes allows you to review the evolution of policies over time and assess their effects on your infrastructure. This historical reference can inform future decision-making and strategic planning.
Securing Your Group Policy Changes
- Authentication and Authorization: Make sure that only people who are allowed to can change Group Policy settings. Use strong authentication methods to stop people who aren’t supposed to be there from getting in.
- As a general rule: the principle of least privilege says that you should only give permissions to people or groups that need them to access certain Group Policy objects (GPOs). Don’t give too many permissions.
- Version Control: Make sure that your GPOs have version control. Back up your Group Policy settings often, and keep a change history to keep track of changes.
- Testing in a Lab: Make sure you test any changes to Group Policy changes thoroughly in a controlled lab environment before putting them into a production environment. This will help you find any problems or conflicts that might arise.
- Documentation: Keep detailed records of your Group Policy settings, including what each GPO is used for, what settings are applied, and any dependencies.
- Auditing and Monitoring: Allow changes to Group Policy to be audited. Check and review logs often to find any changes that don’t seem right or were not authorized.
Conclusion
The configurations needed to control nearly every aspect of Active Directory can be found within Group Policy Objects. These settings can be applied to Sites, Domains, Organizational Units, Users, Groups, Computers, and any other object. Multiple administrators accessing the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) from a variety of computers within the domain are responsible for the centralized management of objects in large organizations. Users frequently express their dissatisfaction with the fact that their system settings have been altered without their knowledge. If you want to know more information about this so you can visit Microsoft Official Website.
Questions and Answers
The Group Policy Operational logs can be seen in Event Viewer by navigating to the Applications and Services > Microsoft > Windows > GroupPolicy directory. The Operational logs can be found in the Operational object. The Security channel of the Windows Event Log is where Group Policy stores some of the events that occur.
The SYSVOL folder is where the GPOs are kept for storage. The SYSVOL folder is replicated in an automated fashion to all of the other domain controllers that are part of the same domain. The space on a hard disk that is taken up by a policy file is approximately 2 megabytes (MB). Replication traffic is increased as a result of the fact that each domain controller stores their own unique version of a policy.
A virtual collection of policy settings is referred to as a Group Policy Object, or GPO for short. A GPO will typically have a one-of-a-kind name, such as a GUID. A GPO is where you’ll find the settings for Group Policy. Both the file system and the Active Directory can be used to represent policy settings when using a GPO.