What I want to do is edit a key in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\microsoft\office\etc.... but I can't seem to find a way to do it for all users. At first I thought I could simply go to HKEY_User\.default and make the edit there. That way every time a new account is created it would already have the edit applied. But apparently new users HKEY_CURRENT_USER's keys arn't built off that one like I thought.

So in short, I just want to know, is there anyway to edit every exsisting HKEY_CURRENT_USER keys and make it so all future accounts are made with that edit already in place? I thought it was but so far I've failed horribly at finding a solution for this.

PS: This should be a one time edit only. ONce the key is changed it should never need to be done again.

Your options are:

1) Make the changes in HKEY_USERS\.Default **before** any accounts are created

2) Make the changes in HKEY_USERS\.Default, and then make the change for each user's SID in HKEY_USERS

3) Make the changes in HKEY_USERS\.Default, and create a batch file to check the value under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, and a .reg file to change the value if it isn't set the way you want it , save it locally and add it's path and filename to a value in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run

4) Enforce the change via Group Policy

I have a question regarding 1 and 4.

1) I thought this would effect all new accounts made after being added. But I created a new account after adding to the .default and it failed to use the settings I'd placed in .default. Is there anyway to set it up so all future accounts use the default setting I wish for them to use? I realize this won't effect current users.

4) Can you do a registry change with a GPO? Or would this require some sort of hack which runs some other program to do the change?

You can indeed change registry keys through Group Policy.

Are you sure the value is definitely ending up in the right place? Do your users have roaming profiles?

No I don't use roaming profiles.

As for the .default key I'm not sure what is happening. I suspect that it's not being used since it's on a domain and as such is drawing the information from the domain controller. But os far I've been unable to figure out exactly what I need to change on the DC.

No I don't use roaming profiles.

As for the .default key I'm not sure what is happening. I suspect that it's not being used since it's on a domain and as such is drawing the information from the domain controller. But os far I've been unable to figure out exactly what I need to change on the DC.

C:\Documents and Settings\Default User\NTUSER.DAT

It is a registry hive file..

C:\Documents and Settings\Default User\NTUSER.DAT

It is a registry hive file..

How would I go about editing that then? It is a binary file and simply editing it with a plain text editor or hex editor is near impossible. Is there some way to login to the default user account and just make the changes so that all future users use the settings of that account?

How to Create a Base Profile for All Users B)

commenting on option 4 you can use a free version of PolicyMaker (supported/recommended by MS and given away with their GPO Management books) which uses a free to distribute agent Client Side Extension to allow you to not just manage access but also create,modify or delete keys and values. In this case you would create a policy maker policy (or add to your current baseline or the most appropriate of your incremental policies) which would then come into affect when the user logs on. This would then also cover the users that have already been created as well