Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP) refers to all the group policies applied to a user and computer. In Microsoft Windows systems, an RSoP utility (Rsop.msc) is provided to gather computer-specific policy information and create a report about the group policy settings being applied to users and computers.
In Windows systems, Group Policy Objects (GPOs) contain Group Policy settings. GPOs can be linked to sites, domains, and organizational units (OUs) and applied to users or computers in a specific site, domain or OU. They can also be filtered, inherited and blocked. Many such settings can exist, so group policy management can get complex and time consuming.
Rsop.msc in Windows computers simplifies group policy management. RSoP is the sum of all group policies applied to a user and computer while Rsop.msc is a Microsoft tool for Active Directory (AD) that makes it easy to gather computer-specific policy information, so all the group policies applied to a user and computer can be easily managed.
The RSoP can be viewed using the gprsesult tool in the Group Policy Management Console. There is also an RSoP wizard, which can be used to create RSoP queries, to determine the effects of existing group policies on users and computers, and to plan group policy implementation.
In Windows 7 and later systems, Rsop.msc provides a report of all Group Policy settings within AD and shows how these settings can affect a network. It also shows how existing GPOs affect various combinations of users and computers when the local security policy is applied.
System admins can create and run RSoP queries in Windows systems to find the RSoP of a computer or user. Based on the query and the information provided by the admin, the utility collects information about all existing group policies to determine which policies are associated with a specific user or computer. The utility and queries also determine the following:
After gathering this information, the utility reports on its search results, simplifying group policy planning, management and troubleshooting.
An RSoP query can operate in one of two modes. Both modes can be used to run RSoP queries on different containers and objects, including computer accounts, user accounts, domains, sites and OUs.
The planning mode helps with group policy planning or restructuring. Admins can use this mode to create an RSoP query and then use the query to test group policy settings and understand its possible effects on users and computers. This mode is also used to determine how group policies will behave when a user (or computer) is moved to a different location or security group. In short, the mode is useful for planning “what if” scenarios.
Some other possible use cases for the RSoP query planning mode include the following:
The RSoP wizard in Windows provides numerous options when an RSoP query is run in planning mode. Admins can select any option depending on the policy information required. The most used options include the following:
The logging mode determines the policy settings that have already been applied to a particular user or computer. In short, it is for understanding “what is.” It is suitable when someone needs to re-examine the existing GPOs applied to a user or computer and make updates if required. The mode can also be used to do the following:
To gather policy information about a specific computer, admins can use Rsop.msc by following these steps:
Clicking on Select a specific user has the same effect as clicking Do not display user policy settings in the results. At the end of the final step, computer-specific settings will be displayed on screen.
See how to avoid common Group Policy Objects backup and restore problems.
18 Jul 2023