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.

Explore how a domain controller stores the ads directory database and the Sysvol folder, uses multi-master replication with DFS, and supports Kerberos authentication, global catalog, ROTC, BitLocker, and two-domain-controller minimum.

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.

This lecture defines the global catalog as a partial, read-only copy of forest objects enabling cross-domain searches and storing 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 FSMO roles in Active Directory through knowledge-check questions, identifying the read master, infrastructure master, schema master, and PDC emulator, and showing how to view roles with Get-ADForest.

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.

Explore how to transfer and seize fisma roles in an Active Directory environment, including when to use PowerShell with the force parameter and which tools manage specific roles.

Learn to deploy domain controllers in virtualized environments using cloning for rapid identical setups, and understand Azure considerations, VM generation ID, and upgrade options.

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 to minimize WAN traffic by transferring the ADDS snapshot locally, then promote the remote server via Server Manager using the Install from media option.

Clone domain controllers to rapidly deploy additional domain controllers in private clouds using Hyper-V for provisioning and disaster recovery, with scalable branch office deployments.

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 a new domain controller with DNS server via server manager, installing Active Directory Domain Services, then promoting it to an existing domain with replication and configuration.

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.

Master creating and managing Active Directory Domain Services user accounts, including unique naming and the user principal name for authentication, using AD Users and Computers, AD Administrative Center, or PowerShell.

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.

Test your understanding of configuring and managing user account attributes in Active Directory domain services, covering log on hours, password change at next logon, password never expires, 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.

Disable inactive user accounts to preserve mailboxes and simplify restoration, rather than deleting them. Create and copy a sales template to new users, copying only common attributes like groups and home directories, while keeping the template disabled and prefixed with an underscore.

Disable a user account in Active Directory to prevent unauthorized access while retaining data; use templates to pre-configure common attributes, including copied group membership, home directory, and logon script.

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 manage Active Directory users with Windows PowerShell, including creating accounts with the new add user command, handling passwords securely, and retrieving all user properties.

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.

Learn to modify multiple users' telephone numbers in Active Directory using Windows PowerShell by identifying relevant attributes (office, home, mobile), using the add parameter, and bulk updating from a file.

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.

Learn to modify Active Directory user properties with PowerShell: view attributes via Attribute Editor, retrieve all properties with Get-ADUser -Properties *, determine types with Get-Type, and update 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.

Use Windows PowerShell with the Active Directory module to enable or disable accounts (via Enable-ADAccount and Disable-ADAccount) and move objects between OUs with Move-ADObject, using distinguished name or object ID.

Engage in a knowledge check of bulk enabling and disabling Active Directory user accounts, querying users, and moving objects with PowerShell, including piping and common cmdlets.

Master post-installation steps to activate Windows Server 2022, including internet or phone activation, key changes, core and remote activation, and status checks via the mgr.vbs script.

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 a domain, enabling remote desktop, configuring DNS and network settings, and applying group policies; cover boot repair and sysprep and git setup.

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.

Join a hands-on recap by cloning the lab repo, launching a Windows 2022 VM, and using PowerShell to activate, view system info, and prepare 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.

Use PowerShell to install domain services and create a child domain named lab one, configure DNS delegation, and register domain controllers in Windows Administration Center for a hands-on lab setup.

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 OUs and move users into sales OU, then add them to sales group. Use user templates to copy attributes, enforce password settings, and keep template accounts disabled with underscores.

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.