Limit user access to particular programs on Windows 7 (Professional, Ultimate and Enterprise only)

If your computer is shared or available for public use, it may be beneficial to allow users limited access to your programs. This can be accomplished by editing the settings in Local Group Policy Editor.

Note: Local Group Policy Editor is only available on the following Windows 7 editions –  Professional, Ultimate and Enterprise.

Procedure:

Navigate to Start and type gpedit.msc in the search bar. Select gpedit from the results to open Local Group Policy Editor.

Go to User Configuration\Administrative Templates\System.  In the right window, under Setting, double click on Run only specified Windows applications.

The Run only specified Windows applications dialog box opens. Select the Enabled radio button. Under Options, select the Show… button to view the list of allowed applications.

The Show Contents dialog box appears. Enter in the applications you allow users to run. If you are fine with the list click OK to continue.

Close Local Group Policy Editor. That’s it! From now on, when a user tries to access a program not listed, they will be greeted with the following error message: