Information
This policy setting allows you to turn off desktop gadgets that have been installed by the user.
The recommended state for this setting is: 'Enabled'.
Rationale:
Allowing gadgets could allow users to install custom gadgets that could be malicious.
Solution
To establish the recommended configuration via GP, set the following UI path to 'Enabled':
Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Desktop Gadgets\Turn Off user-installed desktop gadgets
Note: This Group Policy path may not exist by default.
It is provided by the Group Policy template 'Sidebar.admx/adml' that is included with the Microsoft Windows 7 & Server 2008 R2 Administrative Templates (or newer).
Impact:
Windows will not run any user-installed gadgets.