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Hi, I'm teaching an ICT Class in an "enclosed" environment. I have 16
computers on XP Pro with service pack one, they are about 2 years old and
because of the environment they do not connect to the internet, hence SP1. I
have them set up with an Admin (password protected) and a user account.

Question 1) When I install some programs on the Admin (I have to install
them on Admin) they will not work on the user account (this is not the case
with Microsoft Programs like Works or Encarta). Is there some kind of
security setting for enabling the use of these programs in user account?

Can anyone recommend a decent book or website where I can get some kind of
checklist and help in order that I can maintain security of the computers?
I'm a bit concerned that any of my learners (multiple ages - skill ranges)
can use Run or Cmd or the Dos prompt and bypass my meagre security measures.

The computers are all standalone and non networked but they need to be born
anew every five weeks with just one morning put aside for the job, so I'm
looking to keep the maintainence as low as possible.

Appreciate it if anybody has a bit of time or advice for this topic.

thanks

Art
 
With xp pro,i believe youre looking for the gpedit utility.GPEDIT is also
known
as group policy,for more info use either in search at
microsoft.com.Type:GPEDIT
in run to bring up the utility.
 
In Art Crunchy had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:
Hi, I'm teaching an ICT Class in an "enclosed" environment. I have 16
computers on XP Pro with service pack one, they are about 2 years old
and because of the environment they do not connect to the internet,
hence SP1. I have them set up with an Admin (password protected) and
a user account.

Question 1) When I install some programs on the Admin (I have to
install them on Admin) they will not work on the user account (this
is not the case with Microsoft Programs like Works or Encarta). Is
there some kind of security setting for enabling the use of these
programs in user account?

Can anyone recommend a decent book or website where I can get some
kind of checklist and help in order that I can maintain security of
the computers? I'm a bit concerned that any of my learners (multiple
ages - skill ranges) can use Run or Cmd or the Dos prompt and bypass
my meagre security measures.

The computers are all standalone and non networked but they need to
be born anew every five weeks with just one morning put aside for the
job, so I'm looking to keep the maintainence as low as possible.

Appreciate it if anybody has a bit of time or advice for this topic.

thanks

Art
Click to expand...

Install better software. Software, properly written, will install with the
limited users being able to use it without any problems. When it's been
coded poorly enough so that the limited accounts can't make use of it then
you know the authors are incompetent and the software is best suited for the
dust bin as opposed to a classroom environment.

Make sure that the accounts are limited, don't let them be power users or
administrators. Then they can run anything they want and use all the command
prompts they want and they aren't doing anything. To lock it down even more:

Microsoft Shared Computer Toolkit for Windows XP:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/sharedaccess/default.mspx

You'll need to download it on a network accessed PC (and the other app that
you need) in order to get it to work:

Download details: User Profile Hive Cleanup Service:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=1B286E6D-8912-4E18-B570-42470E2F3582

That too you'll have to download...

Now that you have that done lock the PC down to your particular settings.
Install the software that you need. Then back the entire drive up in an
image format:

Backup! Image/Clone:
http://kgiii.info/windows/all/advanced/image-clone.html

When the one day comes that you have to reset the computer you basically
(I'd use TrueImage for this personally) just press a couple of buttons and
you'd revert to the same image you had before the students touched it and
the same image that it was when you made it. (Also quite a valuable tool for
when someone breaks something.)

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/
http://kgiii.info/

"We approached the case, you remember, with an absolutely blank mind,
which is always an advantage. We had formed no theories. We were simply
there to observe and to draw inferences from our observations." -
Sherlock Holmes
 
Thank you Andrew and Galen, I will need some time to digest this information
but I will feedback to you when I have done. Unfortunately Galen I am not
able to access the downloads from a networked computer I have 16 stand
alone's. I take it that If I were to download it to mine and then try and
transfer it to the stand alone computers there would be a problem with the
windows authentification procedure?

I shall nonetheless explore the possibilities of cloning and gpedit.

Thanks again to you both.

Art
 
In Art Crunchy had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:
Thank you Andrew and Galen, I will need some time to digest this
information but I will feedback to you when I have done.
Unfortunately Galen I am not able to access the downloads from a
networked computer I have 16 stand alone's. I take it that If I were
to download it to mine and then try and transfer it to the stand
alone computers there would be a problem with the windows
authentification procedure?

I shall nonetheless explore the possibilities of cloning and gpedit.

Thanks again to you both.

Art
Click to expand...

Somehow I don't think there would be any problems with that and with what
you're using it for. The licenses are legitimate and surely they've been
activated at one point though probably have not gone through the process of
going the WGA route. Downloading the files to your PC and then burning them
to disk and using them on the other PCs would likely not cause any issues at
all.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/
http://kgiii.info/

"We approached the case, you remember, with an absolutely blank mind,
which is always an advantage. We had formed no theories. We were simply
there to observe and to draw inferences from our observations." -
Sherlock Holmes
 
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