Alex Ruben
How To Prevent Domain Users From Copying Files to USB Drives Using GPO
How to Stop Domain Users from Copying Files to USB Drives with Group Policy
## Step 1: Open Group Policy Management Console
1. Hit Server Manager (probably somewhere on your server desktop).
2. Click on Tools in the upper right menu.
3. Select Group Policy Management.
## Step 2: Create & Link a New GPO
1. In the left pane, find your domain, then right-click on the OU (Organizational Unit) where your users are.
2. Pick Create a GPO in this domain, and link it here.
3. Name it something like USB Write Access Block — or whatever makes sense.
4. Hit OK.
## Step 3: Edit the GPO
1. Right-click the new policy and choose Edit.
2. This opens the Group Policy Management Editor.
## Step 4: Set the Policy Path
Follow this navigation:
Computer Configuration → Policies → Administrative Templates → System → Removable Storage Access
## Step 5: Enable “Deny Write Access” on Removable Disks
1. Find Removable Disks: Deny write access.
2. Double-click it.
3. Set it to Enabled.
4. Hit Apply and OK.
## Step 6: Close & Force Policy Update
– Just close the editor.
– On a client machine (the PC where users will plug in their drives), open Command Prompt and run:
bash
gpupdate /force
– Wait a few seconds. Sometimes, policies take a while to apply, especially if there’s a lot of other restrictions in place.
## Step 7: Test it out
Plug in a USB drive. Try to copy some files onto it. If everything’s set right, Windows should block you with a message like “You don’t have permission” or similar, confirming the policy is working.
## Additional Tips & Troubleshooting
– Double-check that your GPO is linked *exactly* where your user accounts live.
– If users still manage to copy files, look for other conflicting policies — especially default ones or those applied via local group policies.
– Remember, sometimes, security policies don’t apply immediately, especially if users log into multiple machines. It might require a reboot or waiting a bit.
## Final thought
This isn’t foolproof if users have admin rights or if your network setup is complicated, but for most standard domains, this will cut down on unauthorized USB file copying big time. Just keep an eye on the policy enforcement—sometimes, it’s all about timing and conflicts.
Summary
- Created a new GPO linked to the right OU
- Turned on “Removable Disks: Deny write access”
- Forced a GP update and tested on a client machine
- Confirmed that writing to USBs is blocked but read is allowed
Hopefully this shaves off a few hours for someone. It’s not always perfect, but hey, better than letting everyone just copy everything everywhere.