Microsoft Active Directory Administration

Kevin Kocis, MCSE has been working in the Information Technology field for over 10 years. He is currently the Manager of Information Technology for a division of a Fortune 100 company where he strategizes network and server infrastructure, Oracle implementation, platform and interoperability issues(Windows®, UNIX®, Macintosh®). He has written several articles and reviews for Microsoft Certified Professional magazine. In addition, Kevin has presented at TechMentor conferences in Atlanta and San Francisco on Windows® 2000 Server.

Introduction.


1. Understanding Active Directory.


Major Technical Features of Active Directory.



Manageability. Security. Interoperability.



Major Components of Active Directory.



Namespace. Tree. Forest. Domain. Organizational Unit (OU). Site.



NT 4.0 Versus Windows 2000.



Logical Differences. Physical Differences. Administrative Differences.



Microsoft's View of Meta-directory Services. Active Directory Compared to Novell 5.



Partitions. Catalogs. Internet Standards Support.



Summary.



2. Active Directory Architecture.


Subsystem Architecture.



Security Subsystem.



Directory Service Architecture.



Directory System Agent. Database Layer. Extensible Storage Engine.



Protocols, Interfaces, and Services to Active Directory.



X.500 Directory Service. Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). Active Directory Services Interface (ADSI). Active Directory Replication.



Logical Structure Fundamentals.



Domain Hierarchy. Active Directory Domain Names. Tree and Forest Structure.



Physical Structure Fundamentals.



Directory Contents. Directory Partitions. Sites. Sites Versus Domains. Data Storage.



Summary.



3. Managing Domains, Trusts, and DNS.


Domain Fundamentals.



Managing Domains. Adding Domains. Domain Models.



Managing Trusts.



Trust Relationships. Adding Trusts. Modifying Trusts.



Name Resolution in Active Directory.



Naming Standards. Name Restrictions. DNS Server Roles. Resource Records. Zones and Zone Files. Lookup Zones. Dynamic DNS and Zone Transfers. Zone Transfer.



Integrating DNS and Active Directory.



DNS Installation Wizard. Configuring Zones.



Heterogeneous Environments.



Using WINS and WINSR Records. Using UTF-8 Characters Format. Receiving Non-RFC-Compliant Data. UNIX/BIND. DNS Considerations for Active Directory.



DNS and WINS. DHCP in Active Directory.



Benefits. New Windows 2000 DHCP Features. DHCP Lease Process. Integration of DHCP with Dynamic DNS. Configuring DHCP. Setting DDNS Update on a Scope.



Summary.



4. Managing Users, Groups, and Computers.


Object Management Fundamentals. Managing Users.



User Accounts. Predefined User Accounts. Adding and Deleting Users. Modifying Users. Locating Users. Moving User Accounts.



Managing User Profiles and Home Directories.



Advantages of User Profiles. Profile Types. Advantages of Home Directories.



Managing Groups.



Group Types. Group Scope and Replication Traffic. How Domain Mode Affects Groups. Modifying Groups. Converting Group Type. Replication Conflicts.



Managing Computer Accounts.



Creating Computer Accounts. Locating Computers. Editing Computer Accounts. Resetting Computer Accounts. Enabling and Disabling Computer Accounts.



Summary.



5. Active Directory Security.


The Active Directory Security Model.



Authentication in Active Directory. Kerberos Authentication. Kerberos Preauthentication. Public Key Infrastructure. IPSec.



Object-Oriented Security.



Access Control Lists (ACLs). Rights and Permissions. Security Descriptor.



Active Directory Object Security.



Active Directory Objects.



Publishing Active Directory Resources.



Publishing Shared Folders. Publishing Printers. Publishing Guidelines. Ownership and Delegation. Permission Inheritance. Best Practices for Access Control.



Summary.



6. Administering Group Policy.


Group Policy Fundamentals.



Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000 Policy Comparison. Group Policy Administrative Requirements. Group Policy Objects (GPOs). Creating Group Policy Objects (GPOs). Configuring Group Policy. MMC Snap-in Extension Model. Settings and Templates. Special Policies (Account Policies). Linking GPOs. Inheritance. Delegation of GPO Administration. Mixed Mode Group Policy. Filtering and Delegating Group Policy with Security Groups. Multiple Group Policy Objects.



Trust Relationships with Previous Versions of Windows. Summary.



7. Managing and Modifying Active Directory Schema.


Active Directory Schema Fundamentals. Schema Structure: Exploring the Directory Information Tree.



Starting the Active Directory Schema Snap-In. Active Directory Schema Objects.



Schema Modification.



Planning to Extend the Schema. Adding a Class. Verifying Schema Modifications. Issues with Extending Schema. System Checks for Schema Modifications.



Deactivating Schema Objects.



Deactivating Existing Classes and Attributes.



Summary.



8. Managing Sites, Replication, and Network Traffic.


Site Topology Fundamentals.



Sites. When to Create a New Site. Subnets Connections. Site Links. Bridgehead Servers. Site Link Bridges.



Active Directory Replication Model.



Directory Partition Replicas. Benefits. Replication Components. Updates.



Replication Topology.



Transports and Protocols. Intrasite Replication. Intersite Replication. Replication Tools.



Summary.



9. Managing Updates with Flexible Single-Master Operations.


Flexible Single-Master Fundamentals.



FSMO and Directory Schema Updates.



Operations Master Roles and Placement.



Schema Master. Domain Naming Master. Relative Identifier Master. Primary Domain Controller Emulator (PDCE). Infrastructure Master. Placing Flexible Single-Master Operations. Performing Operations Master Role Transfers. Using the ntdsutil Tool for Role Placement. Using the ntdsutil Tool for Role Location. Schema Master Permission Changes. Domain Naming Master Permission Changes. PDCE Permission Changes. Infrastructure Master Permission Changes. RID Master Permission Changes.



Controlling Role Transfers. Controlling Role Seizures. Operations Masters Troubleshooting.



Responding to Operations Master Failures. Primary Domain Controller Emulator Failures. Infrastructure Master Failures. Other Operations Master Failures. Troubleshooting and Technical Details. Other FSMO Errors and Clarifications.



Summary.



10. Active Directory Reliability and Optimization.


Utilities. Active Directory Backup. Performing an Active Directory Backup.



Using the Backup Utility's Backup Wizard. Scheduling Backups.



Active Directory Restore.



Restoring Active Directory Through Reinstallation and Replication. Restoring Active Directory. Restoring Active Directory to Dissimilar Hardware. Performing an Authoritative Restore.



Monitoring Active Directory Performance.



Monitoring Domain Controller Performance. System Monitor. Performance Logs and Alerts. Task Manager. Event Logs. Network Monitor.



Summary.



Appendix A. Common Active Directory Utilities.


ADSI (Active Directory Service Interface). Comma-Separated Value Directory Exchange (CSVDE). LDAP Data Interchange Format Directory Exchange (LDIFDE). Movetree.



Movetree Syntax.



Index.