It's a good point Jerry. There are also some oddities to deal with around Merge mode, like logon scripts running twice because first the loopback user path is processed and then the user path for the same script-fun stuff like that. Overall, I do see more people using replace than merge, simply because there is less to consider. Darren From: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Cruz, Jerome L Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 5:45 PM To: gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) One of the reasons that most server environments only use "Replace mode" is that GPO settings applied to user accounts (along their LDAP path) can apply things that Server Administrators 'do not' want applied to their server systems. For simple GPO registry changes, you can override the setting in your WTS GPOs since they apply after the normal User LDAP path GPO, but that same thinking does not apply to other areas. A good example would be a "user account" GPO that published application software that user's could optionally install. A Server Admin normally would NOT want that type of the policy affecting their 'controlled' server systems. How about User Logon scripts, those will run on your servers as well. And even if those kinds of user account-side GPO settings are not being applied to the user accounts today, who knows what another GPO administrator might configure later on? If you are the "only" Admin in your organization (or perhaps one of just a few admins), then you already know what's going on and might be able to keep things under control. In large organizations, there may be many types of administrators: some for WTS servers, some for user accounts, some for desktop, etc. Since Server Administrators can provide or configure the user settings themselves using the Loopback system, it's been my experience that they usually configure Loopback in 'Replace' mode knowing that they can configure anything necessary for the user accounts themselves. That protects their server systems from unplanned configuration change from other sources. Yes, it means that you might need to explore the kinds of settings currently applied to the user accounts and possibly duplicate some of them, but that's part of the job. Jerry From: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Darren Mar-Elia Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:37 PM To: gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) It can definitely be merge. It just behaves differently in merge mode-instead of the user's "home" policies getting replaced, they are merged with whatever you define in the loopback GPO under User Configuration. Darren From: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of McDonald, William Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 2:32 PM To: gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) John, Darren, I was seeing the GPO denied in the computer section and stopping there. Now I'm looking in the user's section and it is being approved there. So maybe I'm getting somewhere. I only want one loopback GPO in my TS OU for simplicity. Can that one be set to 'merge'? Or must it be 'replace'? Regards, Bill McDonald Systems Administrator II Ebara LogoEbara Technologies, Inc. 51 Main Avenue Sacramento, CA 95838 Direct: (916) 923-7865 Fax: (916) 920-5066 wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx _____ From: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of jpsalemi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 11:05 AM To: gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) Hi Bill Did you disable the user settings? Not just leave them not configured? Putting another loopback will complicate matters really, then you have to figure out which loopback runs last. Not fun. They're a bit cumbersome to work with anyhow. It won't offer you granularity either. Also, you are trying to apply user settings only to this group, or user right? If you're trying to apply more computer settings to the OU, users can't apply them. The loopback basically says apply these user settings to this computer. When it's in replace mode, it will apply the blank policy unless it's disabled. So a loopback on replace mode with the user settings disabled will tell the TS to apply user settings to this computer. Having a user settings only policy linked to the same OU "should" then take those user settings and apply them to the group (or user) you have set in the scope of the policy, but not to anyone else. Also, if you make some other change in the computer part of the loopback, so you see that take effect? John "McDonald, William" <wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent by: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 03/13/2008 12:51 PM Please respond to gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx To <gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> cc Subject [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) Hi John, Thanks for the input. I created a separate loopback gpo in the ts ou and applied to authenticated users and set replace mode. no other changes in this gpo. Unfortunately I have the same result for any other gpo in the ts ou that is applied to any more restrictive group that authenticated users. For both a single user, or a global security group with users in it I get the access denied (security filtering) error. Do my other gpos for the ts also need loopback inabled, or will the one loopback gpo take care of this? Thanks again, Regards, Bill McDonald Systems Administrator II Ebara Technologies, Inc. 51 Main Avenue Sacramento, CA 95838 Direct: (916) 923-7865 Fax: (916) 920-5066 <mailto:wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx _____ From: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of jpsalemi@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Thursday, March 13, 2008 9:35 AM To: gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [gptalk] Re: access denied (security filtering) Hi Bill, The terminal server is a member of authenticated users, that's why that works. You could also apply the policy directly to the machine name, same result. If your users are separated, which is sounds like they are, the easiest way to do this is to have a loopback applied to authenticated users, in replace mode. Leave the user section blank. Then you can add user type policies over your terminal server OU, that will apply to different groups of users using filtering the way you are trying to. Hope this helps, John "McDonald, William" <wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent by: gptalk-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 03/12/2008 05:55 PM Please respond to gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx To <gptalk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> cc Subject [gptalk] access denied (security filtering) All, I am trying to apply a gpo on a terminal server to an individual or small group of users. I have loopback set, but my gpo will only work if I put 'authenticated users' in the scope. Any other group or user gets 'access denied (security filtering)' when you test the GPO in modelling. The terminal server belongs to a TS OU, and that is where my GPO is linked. Anyone see this before? Regards, Bill McDonald Systems Administrator II Ebara Technologies, Inc. 51 Main Avenue Sacramento, CA 95838 Direct: (916) 923-7865 Fax: (916) 920-5066 <mailto:wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wmcdonald@xxxxxxxxxxxxx