Prevent users changing mouse pointers

[FDaveH]

Can anyone please tell me how to, either, restrict users from changing their mouse pointers, or force them to use a specified one thru' Active Directory Group Policy?
Thanks in advance.

 

[FaiTHLeSS]

Dont give them access to the control panel through a policy or you could hide the mouse setting within the control panel from the users. Both the options are found under user configuration > administrative templates > control panel

 

[FDaveH]

Thanks, but I'm afraid that doesn't really help me as many of our users have already changed their pointers. I suppose what I'm ideally looking for is a way of forcing the users to use either the default pointer, or a specified .cur file.
Just thought there may be a way thru' AD.
Any other ideas pls?

 

[FaiTHLeSS]

You could try deleting all other pointers apart from the ones you want the users to use, but i dont know what will happen if users are already using a different set of pointers and you delete them. Best why would be to get a test machine and try it out. Other than that is to goto the users machine change them back to the pointers you want then enable the policy so they cant change them back again.

 

[FDaveH]

Cheers - have already tried deleting the 'Cursors' directory, on a test PC (and your other suggestion). This is fine if the user has not yet changed their pointer, however if they have done, they do not get the default pointer but retain the one they selected themselves - they can not, then, change it back, unfortunately. I have 850-900 users on the system, at the mo and, although the majority have not changed them, I could easily have 100-200 users to sort out.
Thanks for your suggestions, tho'

Dave.

 

[BionicJohn]

Hi, Dave,

Why do you want to prevent users from changing their pointers? I am left handed, have my mouse setup left handed and use left handed pointers. I would be furious if someone insisted I could not use my left handed setup - imagine someone telling you you could not use use your right-handed setup.

Iechyd da! John
23:51 23/09/2003 BST

 

[FDaveH]

It isn't the whole mouse setup I want to change (motion, buttons.....), just need to stop animated pointers which some users have selected. We use a 'Proxy' type support package to take control of remote PCs, and animated objects hog band width thus slowing the whole process to near standstill. Left-handers do not need to panic!

 

[BionicJohn]

Phew! You had me worried there for a minute, Dave!

Iechyd da! John
09:20 24/09/2003 BST

 

[thorswolf]

Dave, your best bet is probably some logon or logoff script that changes the various keys that control the mouse pointer. The pointers and animation are all under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Cursors. What you would do is have the script blank out all the string values, zero out the scheme source (if any) and delete the cursor files from the users' PCs except the one you want the to use.

 

[FDaveH]

That sounds like the sort of thing I need....thanks.

Dave.