Active Directory: Introduction and Administration Tools

Explore domain controllers, the global catalog, and how sign-in times drive placement decisions in single and multiple domain environments, while noting dns and service records and operations masters.

Discover what a domain controller is, hosting a read-write copy of the ADDS database (ntds.did) and sysvol, using multi-master replication and optional rawdc, with Kerberos and BitLocker safeguards.

Learn how domain controllers host a copy of the Active Directory database, authenticate users, and support multi-master replication; explore read-only domain controllers, BitLocker, and GPO templates in Sysvol.

Identify the global catalog as a partial, read-only copy of forest objects enabling cross-domain searches across controllers; it stores a subset of attributes like given name, display name, and mail.

Understand how the global catalog stores a partial, read-only set of forest attributes to speed cross-domain queries, and how the partial attribute set governs replication and universal group checks.

Shows how Active Directory clients locate domain controllers using DNS SRV records and how Netlogon registers server records, sites, and fallback searches to support sign-ins.

Explore how SRV records in DNS help locate domain controllers and enable secure sign-in by LDAP and Kerberos, with site-aware DNS prioritization and Netlogon registration.

Explain how domain sign-in authenticates users via DNS discovery of a domain controller, creates an access token with security identifiers, and uses tickets for network resource access.

Learn how Active Directory authentication works, from DNS lookups to locate a domain controller, through Kerberos with TGTs and service tickets, and LSA–generated access tokens and security IDs.

Learn about the five operations master roles—schema master, domain naming master, read master, infrastructure master, and PDC emulator master—and how they coordinate domain controllers to prevent replication conflicts.

Explore core FISMA roles in Active Directory, including read master, infrastructure master, schema master, and PD Simulator, with knowledge checks reinforcing role responsibilities.

Transfer and seize active directory roles between domain controllers, balancing workloads or decommissioning servers, while noting latest data replicates to the target and that seize is a last resort.

Compare transferring and seizing FISMO roles in Active Directory, highlight planned vs unplanned moves, and note PowerShell with force parameter and AD snap-ins for schema master and other roles.

Deploy a domain controller efficiently via cloning in virtualized environments like Hyper-V, and address Azure rollback concerns with vmgenerationid. Learn installation methods, upgrades, and best practices for virtualizing domain controllers.

Install and promote a domain controller via server manager and the AD DS wizard, selecting new forest, new domain, or existing domain, and configure DNS and functional levels.

Install the domain controller on Windows Server 2016 using Server Manager, PowerShell, or Remote Server Administration Tools, including server core installations, and configure AD DS via wizard or command line.

Learn how to install a domain controller at a remote site using install from media, copy the AD DS database locally, and promote the server via the AD DS wizard.

Install a domain controller from media at a remote site to reduce traffic, using a snapshot of the Active Directory Domain Services database and the install-from-media option in server manager.

Clone domain controllers to rapidly deploy identical configurations in virtualized environments like Hyper-V, enabling quick disaster recovery, private cloud provisioning, and scalable capacity for branch offices.

This demonstration shows how to prepare a source domain controller for cloning, export the source virtual machine, and create and start the cloned domain controller using Hyper-V.

Demonstrates adding another domain controller and DNS via a graphical interface. Install Active Directory Domain Services and DNS, promote the controller, and configure replication for Contoso.

Learn core PowerShell concepts for building scripts, navigate directories, use pipelines with objects, and master commands, aliases, get-command, get-help, variables, and modules.

Install the Active Directory domain services role and promote a server to domain controller using the AD DS deployment module and PowerShell, with prerequisites and forest creation.

Explore the five flexible single master operations roles in an Active Directory domain, their forest-wide or domain-wide scope, and how to transfer or seize them using PowerShell when needed.

Explore managing user accounts in Active Directory, including roaming profiles, disable vs lockout, and templates. Learn to create, configure attributes, manage profiles, and handle inactive or disabled accounts.

Create and manage unique ADDS user accounts to authenticate to the domain and access resources, using naming conventions, UPN suffixes, and tools like ADUC, ADAC, PowerShell, and dsadd.

Explore how Active Directory domain services authenticate users and grant access to resources. Identify the user principal name (UPN) as a forest-wide unique attribute, and learn tools to manage accounts.

Configure user attributes in Active Directory to define sign-in access, log on hours, computer permissions, and group memberships.

Use the Active Directory Administrative Center to create, delete, and move user accounts, then configure attributes such as department and group membership.

Explore configuring and managing user account attributes in Active Directory Domain Services, including log on hours, password resets at next log on, service account passwords, delegation, and group memberships.

Demonstrates creating and managing user profiles across multiple workstations, configuring profile paths, logon scripts, and redirected home folders via user accounts settings and group policy objects.

Explore roaming profiles, folder redirection, and the percent username percent variable in Active Directory, configure profile path and home folder, manage drive mappings with Group Policy, and test knowledge.

Discover how to create and copy user templates in Active Directory to automate attributes like group memberships, home directories, and logon scripts, while disabling templates and using an underscore prefix.

Explore how to manage Active Directory user accounts with templates, including when to disable accounts, pre-configure attributes, and verify inherited group memberships via the member of tab.

Explore Windows PowerShell cmdlets to create, modify, and delete user accounts, including new-ad-user with password handling, account expiration, and enable or disable accounts.

Learn to automate Active Directory user management with Windows PowerShell, creating and configuring user accounts, setting passwords, enabling accounts, and applying properties like name, display name, and department.

Learn to manage Active Directory users with PowerShell using the new AD user cmdlet, covering mandatory name, default disabled without a password, path for OU, and secure password handling.

Learn how to create bulk Active Directory user accounts with Windows PowerShell using a for loop and an input file, populating display name, given name, surname, email, and phone.

Explore bulk user creation in Active Directory with PowerShell by iterating a CSV list using a for-each loop, importing CSV data, and reviewing the newly created user object via pass-through.

Use Windows PowerShell to list the administrator's security groups and add James to each group, ensuring James matches the administrator's group membership after executing the code.

Update office, home, and mobile phone numbers for multiple Active Directory users with PowerShell. Identify target attributes with Attribute Editor or Get-ADUser, then apply CSV-based bulk updates via Set-ADUser.

Learn to modify Active Directory user properties with PowerShell, using the Active Directory PowerShell module and Administrative Center, including bulk updates and editing attributes like description and phone numbers.

Test your understanding of using PowerShell to modify Active Directory user properties, including viewing and editing attributes with the attribute editor and ADSI edit tool, and updating descriptions with Set-ADUser.

Delete user accounts in the Active Directory PowerShell module using the remove user command, with identity and confirm parameter, and batch deletions via piping Get-Content from a text file.

Learn to bulk enable or disable Active Directory accounts with enable-adaccount and disable-adaccount, filter by department or OU, and move accounts using move-ad object in PowerShell.

Explore Active Directory management with PowerShell, performing bulk enable/disable of user accounts and moving objects between OUs using Disable AD account and Move AD object cmdlets.

Install Windows Server 2022, configure post-install settings, and deploy a four-machine Hyper-V lab with domain controllers, core and desktop editions, a Windows 11 client, using PowerShell and Windows Administration Center.

Activate Windows Server 2022 after installation using online or phone methods with SLUI, then use dism and slmgr commands to check edition and license status.

After install, verify devices with dev mgmt.msc, review system info and redirection to a text file, test network, enable Windows Update, install language packs, and disable Windows Media Player.

Continue post-install tasks by renaming the server, joining the domain, configuring DNS, and enabling remote desktop using server manager and sysdm.cpl.

Learn how to create a base image with sysprep by applying post-installation changes, installing updates and applications like git, and capturing a generalized image for new Hyper-V virtual machines.

Review server activation and administration tasks with a hands-on git clone exercise, opening PowerShell, and reviewing commands for licensing, current edition, drivers, network settings, and domain controller setup.

Deploy your first domain controller using server manager and PowerShell to install Active Directory Domain Services, configure DNS, and promote a new forest on Windows Server 2022.

Join a Windows client to the domain, install remote server administration tools, and install Active Directory domain services through Windows Admin Center with a gateway and certificate options.

Add the course server as a domain controller using Windows Admin Center, configure DNS, and deploy a new child domain dk2 with a PowerShell one-liner.

The lecture shows adding a child domain lab1 to a lab domain using PowerShell, installing AD DS, configuring DNS delegation, and managing domain controllers with Windows Administrator Center.

Demonstrates creating a basic Windows server lab with PowerShell, Hyper-V, and differencing images. Learn to configure domain controllers, DNS, and a client through scripted lab setup and checkpoints.

Explore the Active Directory administration tools, including the Active Directory Administrative Center, Active Directory Users and Computers, and Windows PowerShell module, to manage users, computers, groups, and domain objects.

Create a user in Active Directory using AD tools, assign a unique full name and UPN logon. Set the password and populate office, email, department, and job title.

Create sales and IT organizational units, move users, and set up the Sales Managers group. Use a SalesTemplate to copy new users with department and manager details and password settings.

Learn to manage ad ds objects with PowerShell by creating an organizational unit and users, adding users to groups, and removing objects, with commands and tab-completion tips.

configure a selective two-way forest trust between forests by using DNS manager to set conditional forwarders and the Active Directory Domains and Trust wizard.

Master server manager to monitor and manage Windows Server roles and multiple servers, add servers, view services, run best practices scans, and monitor events.