You can use this procedure to specify the following:

  • To configure the preferred order in which wireless computers running Windows® 7 and Windows Vista try to connect to wireless networks.

  • To specify by name wireless networks to which wireless computers running Windows 7 and Windows Vista allowed or denied connections.

  • To specify whether users with computers running Windows 7 or Windows Vista can view wireless networks that are enumerated in the deny list.

  • To configure Windows 7 specific wireless settings for Hosted Network and Explicit Credentials.

Membership in Domain Admins, or equivalent, is the minimum requirement to complete these procedures.

To configure network permissions

  1. Open the Windows Vista Wireless Network (IEEE 802.11) Policies Properties.

    On the General tab, in Connect to available networks in the order of profiles listed below, select any profile, and then click the up arrow or the down arrow to move the profile to the location you want in the list.

  2. Open the Windows Vista Wireless Policy.

  3. On the Network Permissions tab, click Add. The New Permissions Entry dialog box opens.

  4. On the New Permission Entry dialog box, configure the following:

    1. In Network Name (SSID), type the service set identifier (SSID) of a wireless network.

    2. In Network Type, select Infrastructure or Ad-hoc.

      Note

      If you are unsure whether the broadcasting network is an infrastructure or ad hoc network, you can configure a network permission entry for both types.

    3. In Permission, select either Allow or Deny, and then click OK. The New Permissions Entry dialog box closes, returning you to the Network Permissions tab.

  5. On the Network Permissions tab, to allow or prevent wireless clients from connecting to ad-hoc networks, either clear or select Prevent connections to ad-hoc networks.

  6. To allow or prevent wireless clients from connecting to infrastructure networks, either clear or select Prevent connections to infrastructure networks.

  7. To enable or prevent wireless networks from displaying in the Connect to a network dialog box, either select or clear Allow user to view denied networks.

  8. To allow users to create wireless profiles, select Allow everyone to create all user profiles.

  9. To specify that only wireless profiles that are created by using Group Policy Management can be used to connect to allowed networks, select Only use Group Policy profiles for allowed networks.

  10. To block users from hosting a wireless network on computers running Windows 7 that are equipped with wireless network adapters support the Soft Access Point and Virtual Wi-Fi capability, select Disallow Hosted Network.

  11. To permit users with computers running Windows 7 to enter and store their domain credentials (username and password), which the computer can then use to log on to the network (even though the user is not actively logged on), in Windows 7 Policy Settings, select Enable Explicit Credentials.

  12. To specify the duration for which computers running Windows 7 are prohibited from making auto connection attempts to the network, select Enable Block Period, and in Block Period (minutes), specify the number of minutes for which you want the block period to apply. The valid range of minutes is 1-60.

    Note

    For more information about the settings on any tab, press F1 while viewing that tab.

  13. Click OK to save the settings, and close the Network Permissions tab.

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