GP Background

Change Background Group Policy

In this lab, we will learn the steps to deploy desktop wallpaper using group policy in Windows Server. By using this group policy setting, we can deploy common desktop wallpaper on the user’s desktop and prevent users from changing the desktop wallpaper.

We can use JPG (.jpg) or Bitmap (.bmp) image file to deploy desktop wallpaper through Group Policy. It is common practice in the organization to set up a common desktop background on the computers using GPO.

We have two virtual machines for this demo.

1. WinServer.harchit.local (Windows Server DC)

2. Client.harchit.local (Windows 10 client computer)

(Note: We will apply common desktop background policy at domain level)

Follow the step by step below instructions to set wallpaper using group policy:

Step:1 Create a shared folder to store wallpaper image:

1. From WINSERVER’s C: drive, we will create a new folder named CommonWall. This folder will be shared to Everyone, and the share permission will be set to Read-Only as shown below.

2. Move or copy the image that will be used to the CommonWall folder that was just created.

Step2: Create a GPO and define desktop wallpaper setting

You can create and manage Group Policy Objects using the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) from the Domain Controller.

To access the Group Policy Management Console, you will need to first go to the Server Manager.

3.On the Server Manager Dashboard, click on Tools and select Group Policy Management.

4. On the Group Policy Management console, expand the forest then expand the domain where you want to apply your policy.

Lastly, right-click on the domain name where you want to apply your GPO and click on “Create a GPO in this domain and link it here”

Note: You can also create a group policy object and later use the option to link an existing GPO.

5. Give a proper name to the GPO. For example, Common Desktop Wallpaper GPO.

Click the OK button to create the Group Policy Object.

6. Right-click on the GPO and click on edit. This will open the Group Policy Management Editor console.

7. In Group Policy Management Editor Console go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Desktop > Desktop

8. On the right pane, double click on Desktop Wallpaper setting.

Under the Desktop wallpaper console, we must enter or browse to the path where our wallpaper image file is stored and select the wallpaper image file to be used.

For our case it will be: \\WINSERVER\commonwall\myfile.png

9. Select Enabled to enable the policy setting. Under Wallpaper name specify the UNC path \\WINSERVER\commonwall\myfile.png.

Set the wallpaper style as Fill. Click Apply and OK.

10. Close the Group Policy Management Editor console.

Step3: Check the result on a client machine:

11. On the Windows 10 client machine, wait for the policy to get updated automatically or manually update the group policy settings by running command gpupdate /force in command prompt.

12. The users may have to log off and login once to see the changed desktop wallpaper.

After the policy is applied, notice that the desktop background wallpaper has been changed.

1. We can also run command rsop.msc to check which group policy settings is currently applied on the computer.

The image below shows us that the Desktop Wallpaper policy has been applied successfully to our client PC.