How to set multiple home pages via Group Policy

[Matt Anderson]

Anybody used Group Policy to set multiple Home Pages? I've used it to set the primary home page but haven't used it to set multiple so when IE opens they get 2 or 3 tabs with the respective home pages.

 

Thanks,

 

Matt Anderson

IT Director

PEM Community School

http://techchucker.wordpress.com

 

[Jeff Kienitz]

I use group policy to set the home page for students. It seems to work fine. I also have placed web addresses into group policy to be placed in the favorites for use in internet explorer.

The one thing that I believe makes what I do unique is that I also use group policy to take the desktop of each student and turn it into a web page itself. When a student logs in to their account, they have room on the side for a few rows of icons and the rest of the desktop, I send a web page and it is their active desktop. This allows us to create an active billboard with links on it for records access, daily announcements, moodle, podcasts, vodcasts, etc. I have created a "craigslist" sort of desktop (reducing throughput) where students can have the resources right there when they log in. We control the content. It eliminates excuses when it's just there on the student's desktop. The student is unable to change the destop per group policy

I can create a different desktop bulletin for every grade or active directory folder allowing staff to customize the experience.
Using Microsoft ISA in passive mode for students in addition to the bulletin boards adds to the security in that each time the student logs in and gets the active desktop, it records the transaction in ISA. This gives me a complete listing of each time a student logs in. This makes tracking security incidents easier when someone tries using another person's credentials as well as leaves a trail when principal's and parents wants to know what the student is doing.
There is no cost to the school district for this bulletin board service as it is inherent to group policy. I hope this helps.