Windows Device Groups

The Windows Device Groups tab page (Client Manager category) allows you to group managed Windows devices and administer them together. When a Windows computer becomes managed, it automatically inherits settings from the default group.

Note: Specific devices within a group can be configured to override inherited settings from the group.

Creating a Windows Device Group

To create a Windows Device Group:

1. Navigate to the Windows Devices Groups tab in the Client Manager category and click Tasks > Add.
2. On the Main tab page, specify a group name and an optional description.
3. On the OS Settings tab page, select or clear the following options:
   • Disable Print Screen. Disable the Print Screen key on Windows computers.
   • Replace desktop. This feature makes a Windows computer behave like a thin client. It limits users from changing system settings or installing new applications. The administrator can add local apps (which are already installed on a computer) to the app list in addition to published resources from Parallels RAS. If you select this option, specify an administrator password in the Admin Mode Password field (below) to be used to switch a computer between user and admin modes.
   • Kiosk mode. Enable the kiosk mode.This will disable power cycling functions (reboot, shutdown) on computers in the group.
   • Use client as desktop. If this option is selected, Parallels Client will run in full screen mode. A user will not be able to minimize it. Select this option to overcome an issue with Parallels Client breaking out of the kiosk mode on Windows 8.x. The issue may manifest itself in the tile-based UI or while using the "drag to close" feature.
   • Admin Mode Password. Specify a password to switch between user and admin modes when a Windows desktop is replaced (see Replace desktop above).
4. On the Firewall Settings tab page, add the inbound ports if necessary.
5. On the Shadowing tab page, select the Request Authorization option to prompt a Windows device user before remotely controlling their desktop. If enabled, the user can choose to decline the connection.

Adding a Windows Device to a Group

To add a Windows device to a group:

1. Navigate to the Client Manager / Devices tab page.
2. Right-click a managed Windows device and then click Properties in the context menu.
3. On the Main tab page, click the Member of Group drop-down list and select a group.
4. Click OK.

The administrator can now perform power control actions such as Power On, Power Off, Reboot, and Logoff on groups of devices.