Category: At least Windows Vista

This policy setting limits the maximum amount of disk space that can be used for the BITS peer cache as a percentage of the total system disk size. BITS will add files to the peer cache and make those files available to peers until the cache content reaches the specified cache size. By default BITS will use 1 percent of the total system disk for the peercache. If you enable this policy setting you can enter the percentage of disk space to be used for the BITS peer cache. You can enter a value between 1 percent and 80 percent. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting the default size of the BITS peer cache is 1 percent of the total system disk size. Note: This policy setting has no effect if the “Allow BITS peer caching” setting is disabled or not configured.

This policy setting limits the maximum age of files in the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) peer cache. In order to make the most efficient use of disk space by default BITS removes any files in the peer cache that have not been accessed in the past 90 days. If you enable this policy setting you can specify in days the maximum age of files in the cache. You can enter a value between 1 and 120 days. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting files that have not been accessed for the past 90 days will be removed from the peer cache. Note: This policy setting has no effect if the “Allow BITS Peercaching” policy setting is disabled or not configured.

This policy setting determines if the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) peer caching feature is enabled on a specific computer. By default the files in a BITS job are downloaded only from the origin server specified by the job’s owner. If BITS peer caching is enabled BITS caches downloaded files and makes them available to other BITS peers. When transferring a download job BITS first requests the files for the job from its peers in the same IP subnet. If none of the peers in the subnet have the requested files BITS downloads them from the origin server. If you enable this policy setting BITS downloads files from peers caches the files and responds to content requests from peers. Using the “Do not allow the computer to act as a BITS peer caching server” and “Do not allow the computer to act as a BITS peer caching client” policy settings it is possible to control BITS peer caching functionality at a more detailed level. However it should be noted that the “Allow BITS peer caching” policy setting must be enabled for the other two policy settings to have any effect. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting the BITS peer caching feature will be disabled and BITS will download files directly from the origin server.

This policy setting limits the amount of time that Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) will take to download the files in a BITS job. The time limit applies only to the time that BITS is actively downloading files. When the cumulative download time exceeds this limit the job is placed in the error state. By default BITS uses a maximum download time of 90 days (7776000 seconds). If you enable this policy setting you can set the maximum job download time to a specified number of seconds. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting the default value of 90 days (7776000 seconds) will be used.

This policy setting allows you to prevent AutoPlay from remembering user’s choice of what to do when a device is connected. If you enable this policy setting AutoPlay prompts the user to choose what to do when a device is connected. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting AutoPlay remembers user’s choice of what to do when a device is connected.

This policy setting sets the default behavior for Autorun commands. Autorun commands are generally stored in autorun. inf files. They often launch the installation program or other routines. Prior to Windows Vista when media containing an autorun command is inserted the system will automatically execute the program without user intervention. This creates a major security concern as code may be executed without user’s knowledge. The default behavior starting with Windows Vista is to prompt the user whether autorun command is to be run. The autorun command is represented as a handler in the Autoplay dialog. If you enable this policy setting an Administrator can change the default Windows Vista or later behavior for autorun to: a) Completely disable autorun commands or b) Revert back to pre-Windows Vista behavior of automatically executing the autorun command. If you disable or not configure this policy setting Windows Vista or later will prompt the user whether autorun command is to be run.

This policy setting controls the state of the Program Compatibility Assistant (PCA). The PCA monitors applications run by the user. When a potential compatibility issue with an application is detected the PCA will prompt the user with recommended solutions. To configure the diagnostic settings for the PCA go to System->Troubleshooting and Diagnostics->Application Compatibility Diagnostics. If you enable this policy setting the PCA will be turned off. The user will not be presented with solutions to known compatibility issues when running applications. Turning off the PCA can be useful for system administrators who require better performance and are already aware of application compatibility issues. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting the PCA will be turned on. To configure the diagnostic settings for the PCA go to System->Troubleshooting and Diagnostics->Application Compatibility Diagnostics. Note: The Diagnostic Policy Service (DPS) and Program Compatibility Assistant Service must be running for the PCA to run. These services can be configured by using the Services snap-in to the Microsoft Management Console.