Consistent Desktop

[JasonK]

Hi all~

I've been given the requirement to ensure that all users (40) have a consistent desktop environment.  Every computer should have the same version of all of the programs installed, in the same location on the desktop, etc.  I'm thinking Remote Desktop Services / Citrix is the way to go (not currently deployed), but would love to hear your thoughts.  I'll be picking up a TAM replacement server around the same time, so getting something beefy and virtualizing is an option.  If this route is the way to go, what should I monitor to ensure I have enough memory, etc? 

Thanks,

~Jason

[Bloody Jack Kidd]

Terminal Services / Citrix does give you quite a bit of control, so it's not a bad idea.  If those costs are prohibitive though, you can do quite a bit of lockdown using Group Policy Objects and there are also things like SteadyState and DeepFreeze.

[Jon Robinson]

Even if you use a TS or Citrix Server, the users, based on their profile, can change things around.  The only way to do that without using 3rd party software is setting up mandatory profiles.   The only problem is it doesn't save any settings when the user logs off.  Including any outlook profiles and such.  So you would have to look into some 3rd party software as mentioned above.