Appearence settings for all users

[Vince]

When you change the appearence settings in Windows 2008 R2 in the advanced performance settings from Best Performance to Best Appearance, it only sets it for the user that you’ve done it for. All other regular users you have to do it by running as Administrator (A UAC dialogue shows) however if you do that it will only display that administrators settings and doesn’t change the properties of the users Appearance settings. Is there a way to change the default from best performance to best appearance for all users?

[AsciiWolf]

SystemPropertiesPerformance.exe

[Anonymous]

SystemPropertiesPerformance.exe

[Vince]

Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Thanks.

[halladayrules]

In order to apply your preferred visual effects settings to ALL users it would require you to become a domain. On editions before Vista/2008, changes to the registry which required the use of an API call (the thing that tells the GUI to apply your visual effects) was not included with the Microsoft operating systems. Not too long ago Microsoft bought out a vendor called “Desktop Standard” which allows you to create group policy scripts that “apply” registry settings. Now it is integrated within the Group Policy Preferences of the GPMC. It can be found at:

Computer Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings > Registry

For example you could create a GPO that affects “all domain users” and then simply edit this setting, and navigate to HKCUSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerVisual Effects and create a DWORD value called “VisualFXSetting” to 2. That would effectively change the setting to “adjust for best appearance” and the setting would be applied during the next logon when the user logs on.

You can understand the logic sense in this and why it doesn’t exist in a local policy. Deploying visual effects to 100 workstations makes more sense then deploying it to 5 measly user accounts or whatever small number it may be.

[Anonymous]

In order to apply your preferred visual effects settings to ALL users it would require you to become a domain. On editions before Vista/2008, changes to the registry which required the use of an API call (the thing that tells the GUI to apply your visual effects) was not included with the Microsoft operating systems. Not too long ago Microsoft bought out a vendor called “Desktop Standard” which allows you to create group policy scripts that “apply” registry settings. Now it is integrated within the Group Policy Preferences of the GPMC. It can be found at:

Computer Configuration > Preferences > Windows Settings > Registry

For example you could create a GPO that affects “all domain users” and then simply edit this setting, and navigate to HKCUSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerVisual Effects and create a DWORD value called “VisualFXSetting” to 2. That would effectively change the setting to “adjust for best appearance” and the setting would be applied during the next logon when the user logs on.

You can understand the logic sense in this and why it doesn’t exist in a local policy. Deploying visual effects to 100 workstations makes more sense then deploying it to 5 measly user accounts or whatever small number it may be.

[Author]

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