


Now, when I add the complete device ID, the policy works as expected, i.e. I am just not sure whether device ID USB\class_e0 is the correct one or not?Īlso, I check hardware IDs of few phones and all of them have distinct IDs like Device 1 I have also reviewed the process described here. System/Device Installation/Device Installation Restrictions > Prevent installation of devices that match any of these device IDs We have applied computer policy to block device installation And we have tried following things which seems to be working for some people but not us.
#Gpo usb block windows#
Select if you want the permissions to be inheritable or not and click OKīy following the methods mentioned above you can implement a USB lockdown based on user context.For Windows based PCs connected with Windows AD with Group policy, we want to block USB phone tethering options.You will now be prompted with the security tab, make the desired changes (deny access for SYSTEM account and allow only Domain Admins or any other specific group you would like to allow and click OK.Browse down to windows\system32\usbstor key and click OK.Right-click Registry and select Add Key.Navigate to Computer Configuration > Policies > Windows Settings > Security settings.Edit the Group policy object where you want to configure the settings.To change the permissions for USBSTOR key and prevent users to modify the key values here’s what you need to do: Once gpedit.msc is blocked, users will not be able to access it even though they have admin access and only the Domain Admins or any other specific group members whom you denied the group policy to be applied will have access. If you need to allow USB for a set of users/admins, put them into a security group and add it to the delegation tab of the Disable USB GPO with Apply Group Policy option as ‘Deny’. This GPO setting was first available on Windows Vista.
#Gpo usb block how to#
This will ensure that Domain admins are not affected by the USB block. this tutorial shows how to block USB drives by local group policy. Now select the Delegation tab for the Disable USB GPO and for the Domain Admins Deny the Apply Group Policy option. In the same Workstations OU create another GPO and browse to Computer Configuration > Policies > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Microsoft Management Console > Group Policy and Disable the Group Policy Object Editor. It is recommended that you block access to gpedit.msc and also modify the permissions for the USBSTOR key in registry so that users do not tamper and override any settings applied by IT admins.īlock gpedit.msc for users (with admin permissions)


Now as mentioned earlier in this post, if a user has admin rights, he/she can launch Local Group Policy (gpedit.msc) and allow Removable Devices under Computer Configuration which will override the user context settings we applied above. Now that the setting is applied, if any USB device is connected you will get the below error message. The caveat under user context would be that any user who has admin permissions (power users, administrators) can override the settings applied by GPO.Įnable the setting All Removable Storage Classes: Deny all access In an environment where users log into any machine (roaming) applying the policy under user context would be the best method to block USB. Note: If you configure the Removable storage access policies under Computer Configuration, it applies to all machines and if you configure this policy under User Configuration, it applies to all users and not the machines. Computer Configuration -> Policies -> Administrative Templates -> System -> Removable Storage Access.User Configuration -> Policies -> Administrative Templates -> System -> Removable Storage Access.Removable devices can be blocked either in user context or computer context of the GPO: Right click the Disable USB GPO and choose Edit. Right-click on OU Workstations and select Create a GPO in this domain and Link it here. Firstly, we need to create a new Group Policy from the management console ( gpmc.msc). Let’s assume that we want to apply the policy to OU named Workstations. Pre-requisite: Domain Controllers on Windows Server 2008 and higher. The methods used in this article are done via Group Policy. This article explains how to block USB access for all users and allow only for specific admin users. In many organisations use of USB-devices (flash drives, USB HDDs, SD cards and so on) are blocked for security reasons to prevent security leakage of confidential data and the penetration of viruses into the internal network.
