In this article, I want to share the important links for the main ADMX template delivery. These packages include administrative templates used for managing group policies on Windows Server. These templates are essential when using Group Policy Objects to implement new software on clients and servers.
To use these ADMX templates, you must first unzip the downloaded files. Then, copy the contents into the directory %systemroot%sysvoldomainpoliciesPolicyDefinitions on a domain controller. If you want to use these guidelines on your computer, copy the ADMX templates into the directory %systemroot%policyDefinitions. Most of the time, %systemroot% refers to your computer’s “C:\Windows” folder.
Even though the Microsoft download packages are usually in English, they always include the necessary language files (ADML).
ADMX templates for Office 365, 2019 and 2016
Office 365 always includes the latest versions of the Microsoft Office Suite; therefore, the ADMX templates for Office 365 are continuously updated. Here, you get all the setting options for all Office 365 applications.
Since Office 365 is the version of Office 2016 and Office 2019, these ADMX templates also work for versions of Office 2016 and later.
Administrative Templates for Windows 10
Microsoft provides its own ADMX files for each operating system version of Windows 10. After each feature update, the latest Templates for Windows 10 are published.
Windows Server – ADMX Templates
The Group Policy Files for Windows Server 2019 are identical to those for Windows 10 (1809). The Windows 10 (1607) ADMX files are also needed for the Group Policy for Windows Server 2016.
Group policies for browsers
In addition to the Microsoft Edge browser, it is possible to customize and control the Firefox or Chrome browser via group policies. You can find the required ADMX files here:
- Microsoft Edge (from version 77) – see Microsoft Security Compliance Toolkit
- Mozilla Firefox (Github link)
- Google Chrome: ADMX templates are in the Google Chrome Pack.
Local Administrator Password Solution
The solution provided by Microsoft to secure the local administrator password is still largely unknown. The “Local Administrator Password Solution” (LAPS for short) tool automatically changes the local administrator’s password on the local computers in a Windows domain every x days.
The password valid for the computer is stored in the Active Directory and can be called up anytime. You can find detailed instructions and the necessary ADMX files here: Change administrator password via group policy.
