<div>One of the best ways to learn any new technology can be to install it in a test lab and see how it behaves. One of the benefits of virtualizing your learning lab is the ability to create server templates which let you rapidly deploy VMs, test applications, and then blow it all away and reset. This leads to lots of first time logins on newly installed servers. Here are a few useful group policies that make the process a bit more streamlined:</div>
<ul>
	<li>Force Classic Control Panel</li>
<ul>
	<li>As a true geek, the first time I open the Control Panel on a Windows 7 or Server 2008/R2 VM, I reach up to that "View by: Category" dropdown and change it to "View by: Small icons" so that I can see all the control panel icons at once. This GPO sets that to the default view for all users.</li>
<ul>
	<li><strong>User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\<strong>Always open All Control Panel items</strong></strong></li>
</ul>
</ul>
	<li>No Ctrl+Alt+Del</li>
<ul>
	<li>This turns off the "Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to logon" prompt and saves you from having to reach for Ctrl+Alt+Ins when you're logging in within the vSphere Client.</li>
<ul>
	<li><strong>Computer Configuration\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\Security Options\Disable CTRL+ALT+DEL requirement for logon</strong></li>
</ul>
</ul>
	<li>No Initial Setup or Server Management</li>
<ul>
	<li>If you use the Initial Setup or Server Management dialogs to help you setup your servers, you'll want to skip this GPO. I normally close them as soon as they appear (and they reappear for every new user on the system). If it takes half of a second to close each one, just think of how many dozens of seconds this could potentially save me over the course of a lifetime &lt;sarcasm&gt;.</li>
<ul>
	<li><strong>Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\System\Server Manager\Do not display Initial Configuration Tasks window automatically at logon</strong></li>
	<li><strong>Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\System\Server Manager\Do not display Server Manager automatically at logon</strong></li>
</ul>
</ul>
	<li>Show All Tray Icons (need more research - reg key in GPO Prefs?)</li>
</ul>