2.2 Confirming GPA Installation Requirements

The account you use to install GPA must have the following Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft Windows administrator permissions:

  • Database administrator permissions on Microsoft SQL Server

  • Domain administrator permissions in the domain where you create the GPA service accounts

  • Local administrator permissions on the computers where you install the GPA Server and GPA Console

GPA supports 64‑bit platform, including Itanium, ensuring you can run GPA in any Microsoft Windows environment.

Ensure the computers on which you install GPA meet the minimum hardware and software requirements for each GPA component you plan to install. The following sections list these requirements for each GPA component. You can also run the prerequisite checker included in your installation kit to verify that you meet the minimum requirements for each component you plan to install.

To check for GPA requirements on the target computer:

  1. Log on to a computer where you want to install GPA components.

  2. Extract NetIQGPAInstallationKit.

  3. Run SETUP.EXE from the GPA installation kit.

  4. Select the components you plan to install on that computer, and then click Check.

  5. If the prerequisite checker identifies missing software, install and configure the software before you begin installing GPA. For example, you may need to install Microsoft SQL Server.

  6. If you are installing GPA components on different computers, run the prerequisite checker on each computer to verify you meet the requirements for a given component.

2.2.1 GP Repository Requirements

For more information about the prerequisite checker, see Section 2.2, Confirming GPA Installation Requirements. The following table lists the hardware and software requirements for the GP Repository computer.

Element

Requirements

Disk space

1 GB (able to expand to 5 GB)

Database

One of the following versions of Microsoft SQL Server:

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2016 Standard or Enterprise Edition (United States - English version, Case Insensitive)

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Standard or Enterprise Edition (United States - English version, Case Insensitive)

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2022 Standard or Enterprise Edition (United States - English version, Case Insensitive)

Other software

Other prerequisites are:

  • .NET Framework 4.8

  • Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1 or 4.0

  • Microsoft Visual C++ 2022 Redistributable Package (x86)

  • Microsoft ODBC Driver 13 for SQL Server

Configuring Microsoft SQL Server

GPA requires the following Microsoft SQL Server configurations:

  • Default collation order for US English, Case Insensitive SQL Server installation. For more information about supported collation orders, contact Technical Support.

  • Mixed-mode authentication for managing GPOs in untrusted domains

  • Windows authentication for trusted domains

GPA supports the following Microsoft SQL Server configurations:

  • Default or named instances

  • Microsoft SQL Server clusters

Specifying the Repository Authorization Code

The Repository Authorization Code is a unique identifier for every GP Repository that GPA Consoles must use to communicate with the GP Repository. You specify the Repository Authorization Code when you install the GP Repository. Although you have the option to accept a default value, defining your own Repository Authorization Code ensures a higher level of security for your GPA installation. Follow best practices for creating strong passwords, such as using a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters.

NOTE:Record the Repository Authorization Code you define for later use. You must provide the Repository Authorization Code whenever you install a GPA Console to enable communication between the GP Repository and the GPA Console.

If you are setting up an environment with more than one GP Repository, you can use the same Repository Authorization Code for each one. Using the same code greatly simplifies your administration of GPA Consoles and ensures that each GPA Console can communicate with any GP Repository.

Setting the GPA Repository Management Group

GPA requires you to specify a user group during the GP Repository installation. You can specify an existing group or accept the default group GPA_REPOSITORY_MANAGEMENT, which GPA creates if you do not specify an existing group. Any users you add to the GPA_REPOSITORY_MANAGEMENT group or the group you specify have full permissions to perform all GPA‑related tasks and manage all levels of GPA Security. For more information about GPA security, see Section 4.1, Understanding the GPA User Security Model.

2.2.2 GPA Server Requirements

For more information about the prerequisite checker, see Section 2.2, Confirming GPA Installation Requirements. The following table lists the hardware and software requirements for the GPA Server computer.

Element

Requirements

CPU

1 GHz (x86 processor) or 1.4 GHz (x64 processor)

RAM

4 GB

Disk space

10 GB

Operating system

One of the following operating systems:

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2022

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2019

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2016

Group Policy Management Tools

Dependant upon operating system.Windows Server 2016, 2019, 2022– No action required.

Other software

Other prerequisites are:

  • .NET Framework 4.8

  • Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1 or 4.0

  • Microsoft Core XML Services 6.0 Service Pack 1

  • Microsoft Visual C++ 2022 Redistributable Package (x86)

2.2.3 GPA Console Requirements

For more information about the prerequisite checker, see Section 2.2, Confirming GPA Installation Requirements. The following table lists the hardware and software requirements for the GPA Console computer.

Element

Requirements

CPU

Pentium 4, 1 GHz

RAM

2 GB

Drive space

1 GB

Operating system

One of the following operating systems:

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2022 (64-bit)

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2019 (64-bit)

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2016 (64-bit)

  • Microsoft Windows 11 (64-bit)

  • Microsoft Windows 10 (64-bit)

Group Policy Management Tools

Depending on the version of Windows, install Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) or install Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT), and then enable Group Policy Management Tools:

You can download these tools from the Microsoft Download Center at www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/default.aspx.

NOTE:Download the GPMC from the Microsoft website, install it, and then proceed to install the GPA console on Windows 10 and 11 machines.

Web browser

Microsoft Edge

Languages (Reports)

All reports are generated in American English.

The following reports can also be generated in German:

  • GPO Settings Report

  • RSoP Analysis Report

  • RSoP Analysis Comparison Report

  • Group Policy Results Diagnostics Report

  • Group Policy Comparison or Differential Report

Other software

Other prerequisites are:

  • .NET Framework 4.8

  • Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1 or 4.0

  • Microsoft Core XML Services 6.0 Service Pack 1

  • Microsoft Visual C++ 2022 Redistributable Package (x 86 and x64 for 64-bit computers)

  • PowerShell 2.0 or above

Enabling Group Policy Management Tools

If you are installing the GPA Console on a computer running Microsoft Windows Vista or later, install Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT), and then enable Group Policy Management Tools.

To install RSAT and enable GPMC:

  1. Download and install RSAT for the version of Microsoft Windows installed on the GPA Console computer.

  2. Start the Programs application in Control Panel.

  3. Under Programs and Features, select Turn Windows features on or off.

  4. In the Windows Features window, expand Remote Server Administration Tools > Feature Administration Tools, select Group Policy Management Tools, and then click OK.

Creating the GPA Console Nodes Visibility Group

GPA can create a global group whose members have full access to manage node visibilty on the GPA Console. To create this account, GPA must use a domain administration account or an account with the following permissions:

  • On the CN=Users AD container, add the Create Group Objects permission to this object and all descendant objects.

  • On the CN=System AD container, add the following permissions to this object and all descendant objects:

    • Create Container Objects

    • Modify Permissions

    • Modify Owner

    • Read All Properties

    • Write All Properties

You can name this group yourself, select an existing group name, or accept the default group name of GPA-CONSOLE-NODES-VISIBILITY-MANAGEMENT. You must also provide a domain administration account user name and password. The owner of the domain administration account will have the power to add users or groups to the GPA-CONSOLE-NODES-VISIBILITY-MANAGEMENT group. For more information about managing node visibility, see Section 3.3.5, Managing Node Visibility on the GPA Console.