Category: Networking 101

What domain controllers are and how they fit into your network infrastructure. In the previous article in this series, I talked about the roles of various computers on a network. As you may recall, one of the roles that I talked a little bit about was that of a domain controller. In this article, I will talk more about what […]

Discusses the anatomy of a Windows domain. In the previous article in this series, I introduced you to the concept of domains and domain controllers. In this article, I want to continue the discussion by talking about the anatomy of a Windows domain. As I explained in Part 5 of this article series, domains are not something new. Microsoft originally […]

The necessity of FSMO roles. So far in this article series, I have explained that the Active Directory consists of a forest filled with domain trees, and that the names of each domain indicate its position within the forest. Given the hierarchical nature of the Active Directory, it might be easy to assume that domains near the top of the hierarchy […]

Continuation of the discussion of FSMO roles. Introduction This article will continue the discussion of FSMO roles by discussing what the various roles do, the consequences of FSMO failures, and how to determine which server is hosting the FSMO roles. The Importance of FSMO Roles In the previous part of this article series, I explained that Active Directory domains use […]

How objects are stored in the Active Directory In the last few parts of this article series, I talked a lot about what the Active Directory is, and how it works in regards to your network’s domain controllers. You already know from the previous articles in this series that the Active Directory is essentially a database containing various objects such as user […]

The basics of naming objects within a directory. In the previous part of this article series, I explained that the LDAP protocol references objects in the Active Directory by their distinguished name, and that every object in the directory has its own unique distinguished name. In this article, I want to continue the discussion by explaining how distinguished names work. […]

The Active Directory Users and Computers console and how to use this console to manage remote domains. Over the last several parts of this article series, I have talked a lot about the inner workings of the Active Directory. In this article, I want to switch gears and show you what all of this information has to do with running […]

How to create a user account and some basic user account management techniques. n the previous part of this article series, I began discussing the Active Directory Users and Computers console. Although that article explained how to connect to the domain of choice using the console, it never actually explained how to use the console for day-to-day management tasks. In this article, […]

This article continues the Networking for Beginners series by introducing the concept of security groups. In the previous article in this series, I showed you how to use the Active Directory Users and Computers console to create and manage user accounts. In this article, I want to continue the discussion by teaching you about groups. In a domain environment, user […]

The various types of security groups that Windows allows you to create. In the previous article, I showed you how to create security groups in Windows Server 2003. When I walked you through the process though, you might have noticed that Windows allows you to create a few different types of groups, as shown in Figure A. As you might […]