This article illustrates how to use Group Policy objects to deploy a service pack for Windows 2000.. The same techniques can be used to deploy other programs as well.

In a Windows 2000 domain, Group Policy Objects can be used to administer client computers and user configurations from a centralized management location. Group Policy is stored as part of Active Directory. One of the features of Group Policy is the ability to assign or publish programs to users or computers in the Windows 2000 domain.

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Installing a service pack for Windows 2000 on computers in a Windows 2000 domain

1.	Create a folder to hold the service pack files on a network server. Share the folder with appropriate permissions to allow the users and computers to read and execute these files.
2.	Copy the service pack files into this location. Copy the entire \i386 directory structure from the service pack CD or Web download. You can obtain the service pack file from the following Microsoft Web site: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/2000/bb735341.aspx (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/2000/bb735341.aspx) You have to extract the .exe package file, and then copy the entire \i386 directory structure to the network share folder.
3.	After the installation files have been prepared, the Group Policy object to install the service pack can be created. From a Windows 2000-based computer in the domain, log on as a Domain Administrator and start the Active Directory Users and Computers snap-in. NOTE: Group Policies can be applied to domains, sites, and organizational units. This article illustrates how to deploy the service pack to all computers in the domain, a typical customer scenario. The same steps, however, are used to apply the policy to a site or an organizational unit.
4.	From the Active Directory Users and Computers snap-in, highlight the domain at the top of the tree. Right-click the domain and click Properties. Click the Group Policy tab. The list shows all Group Policy objects that will be applied at the Domain level. By default, only the Default Domain Policy exists.
5.	You must decide whether to add the service pack installation to the current Group Policy object. You must decide whether to add the service pack installation to the a current Group Policy object, or to create a new Group Policy object to install the service pack. This decision must be made based on the current and expected future uses of the Group Policy. The steps in this article create a new Group Policy object for the service pack installation. However, the service pack installation can easily be added to an existing Group Policy object by skipping the next step.
6.	To create a new Group Policy object for installing the service pack at the Domain level, click the New button. Give the new Group Policy object a descriptive name. Use care in selecting the name; if the Group Policy object will be used for more than just installing the service pack in the future, a name such as "Service Pack 1 Installation" may not be appropriate.
7.	With the new Group Policy object highlighted, click the Edit button. This starts the Group Policy snap-in and lets you edit this Group Policy object. Programs can be assigned to either users or computers. In the case of a service pack, it makes no sense to assign the package to users. (This would imply that the presence of the service pack on a computer would depend on which user is logged on at the moment; obviously, this is not a reasonable scenario.)
8.	To assign the service pack to computers, expand the Computer Configuration, Software Settings, and Group Policy object items.
9.	Right-click Software installation in the Group Policy object, and then click New Package. You are prompted for the path to the Windows Installer file (.msi) for this package. Navigate to the network location that contains the Windows Installer file, highlight the file, and then click Open. WARNING: If the Windows Installer file resides on the local hard disk, do NOT use a local path! Use a UNC path (\\servername\sharename\path\filename.msi) back to the local computer to indicate the location of the installation files. Otherwise, client computers attempting to install the package will look on their local hard disks in the location indicated, and of course will not find the installation files there, and the installation will fail.
10.	When prompted to choose between Assigned and Advanced Published or Assigned, click Assigned unless you have the experience and need to modify the advanced options. You should now see the software package in the left pane of the Group Policy snap-in. You should see that the Auto-Install property of the package is set to Yes, which indicates that all computers in the domain will automatically install this package.

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Verification

The service pack will be automatically installed on each computer in the Domain the next time the computer is restarted. To verify this with a test on a Windows 2000 computer in the domain follow these steps:

1.	Restart the computer that you want to test. It may take several minutes for the service pack installation to complete. Once the service pack installation is complete, the workstation will automatically restart itself.
2.	Click Start, click Run, and then type winver. This will indicate the version of Windows 2000 installed on the computer and whether the service pack is installed.

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For detailed information on Group Policy Objects, please see the Microsoft Windows 2000 Server Resource Kit.

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