Using Special Groups
Special groups can be used by the system or by administrators. Membership in these groups is automatic if certain criteria are met. You cannot manage special groups through the Local Users and Groups utility, but an administrator can add these special groups to resources. Table below describes several of the special groups that are built into Windows 7.
Special Groups in Windows 7
| Group | Description |
| Anonymous Logon | This group includes users who access the computer through anonymous logons. When users gain access through special accounts created for anonymous access to Windows 7 services, they become members of the Anonymous Logon group. |
| Authenticated Users | This group includes users who access the Windows 7 operating system through a valid username and password. Users who can log on belong to the Authenticated Users group. |
| Batch | This group includes users who log on as a user account that is used only to run a batch job. Batch job accounts are members of the Batch group. |
| Creator Owner | This is the account that created or took ownership of the object and is typically a user account. Each object (files, folders, printers, and print jobs) has an owner. Members of the Creator Owner group have special permissions to resources. For example, if you are a regular user who has submitted 12 print jobs to a printer, you can manipulate your print jobs as Creator Owner, but you can't manage any print jobs submitted by other users. |
| Dialup | This group includes users who log on to the network from a dial-up connection. Dial-up users are members of the Dialup group. |
| Everyone | This group includes anyone who could possibly access the computer. The Everyone group includes all users who have been defined on the computer (including Guest), plus (if your computer is a part of a domain) all users within the domain. If the domain has trust relationships with other domains, all users in the trusted domains are part of the Everyone group as well. The exception to automatic group membership with the Everyone group is that members of the Anonymous Logon group are not included as a part of the Everyone group. |
| Interactive | This group includes all users who use the computer's resources locally. Local users belong to the Interactive group. |
| Network | This group includes users who access the computer's resources over a network connection. Network users belong to the Network group. |
| Service | This group includes users who log on as a user account that is used only to run a service. You can configure the use of user accounts for logon through the Services program, and these accounts become members of the Service group. |
| System | When the system accesses specific functions as a user, that process becomes a member of the System group. |
| Terminal Server User | This group includes users who log on through Terminal Services. These users become members of the Terminal Server User group. |
Now that we have looked at the different types of groups, let's explore at how to manage and work with these groups.