I've developed a tool that does a simple retrieval of registered services and installed applications from remote Windows Server 2003 servers via WMI.
My problem is, the tool needs to be run on an ad hoc basis by a user who is not an administrator of those servers.
I've created a domain user (which the tool will use to run the query) that I'd like to grant remote WMI permission on each server, but given there are about 200 servers, I can't do it manually. Is there a way to grant access to that domain user via WMI, or by distributing a registry change via SMS or Group Policy?
I think you can give the appropriate permissions using logon scripts coupled with the trick mentioned here: http://blogs.msdn.com/spatdsg/archive/2007/11/21/set-wmi-namespace-security-via-gpo-script.aspx
disclaimer: I haven't tried this myself since I don't have a windows box with me, so I'd recommend trying it out on a few dev boxes before you decide to do anything with it. cheers.