Active Directory: Sites and Replication with a Lab

Name: Active Directory: Sites and Replication with a Lab
Rating: 4.3 (165 reviews)

Active Directory Sites and Replication: AD DS replication, partitions, conflicts, topology

Created byVitalii Shumylo

Last updated 9/2026

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Sites
Sites Replication
AD DS Partitions
SYSVOL
ISTG
SIte Links
Site Link Bridging
Replication Topology

Course content

6 sections • 24 lectures • 2h 13m total length

Course Overview1:15
Section Overview1:50
Explore why replication matters to the global catalog, how the configuration partition replicates to all global catalog servers, and how the multiple master model propagates changes across domain controllers.
What are AD DS partitions?6:35
Describe how Active Directory partitions—configuration, schema, domain, and application—organize data, drive replication to domain controllers across the forest, and define object and attribute rules.
Characteristics of AD DS replication7:10
Examine characteristics of AD DS replication, including multiple-master replication, store-and-forward, data store partitioning, and attribute-level replication, and understand how domain controllers manage changes, conflicts, and replication topology.
How AD DS replication works within a site11:56
Explore how ad ds replication within a site uses connection objects, knowledge consistency checker, notification and polling mechanisms to maintain a fast, two-way topology among domain controllers.
Resolving replication conflicts5:17
How replication topology is generated4:44
Describe how replication topology is generated across AD forest partitions—schema, configuration, domain, and application partitions—using forest-wide, site topology information, fault-tolerant replication and global catalog processes.
How SYSVOL replication works3:14
Learn how sysvol replication synchronizes logon scripts and group policy templates across domain controllers using dfs replication, replacing the older FRS with differential compression and scheduled bandwidth control.

Configuring AD DS sites Section Overview2:51
What are AD DS sites?5:45
Active Directory sites represent physical locations connected by network links and map subnets to sites, enabling replication control, service localization, and site-based group policy deployment.
Why implement additional sites?3:15
Explore why adding active directory sites improves authentication and replication by aligning domain controllers with slow links, user density, and localized services to reduce latency.
How replication works between sites4:34
Explore how replication differs within and between sites, comparing reliable, uncompressed intra-site traffic with compressed inter-site traffic to optimize bandwidth, schedules, and urgent change notifications.
What is the ISTG?4:03
The ISTG creates the site replication topology using the knowledge consistency checker, designates a bridgehead server per site, and automatically generates connection objects for intersite replication.
Overview of SRV records4:27
Register SRV records in DNS to publish domain controller services like LDAP and Kerberos, mapping service names to host names with TCP or UDP transport.
How client computers locate domain controllers within sites4:21
Moving domain controllers between sites2:19

Lab: Implementing AD DS Sites and Replication10:25
Implement Active Directory Domain Services sites and replication for London headquarters and Toronto, deploying a Toronto domain controller, renaming the default site, configuring subnets, and monitoring replication with Repadmin.
Lab Solution: Implementing AD DS Sites and Replication16:45
########Mod04Ex4.ps1#########
#Displays "Starting"
Write-Host "Starting" -ForegroundColor DarkGreen
#Remove all Site Links
Get-ADReplicationSiteLink -Filter *| Remove-ADReplicationSiteLink -Confirm:$false
Start-Sleep -Seconds 2

#Remove all subnets
Get-ADReplicationSubnet -Filter * | Remove-ADReplicationSubnet -Confirm:$false
Start-Sleep -Seconds 2

#Mess up DNS on TOR-DC1
Clear-DnsClientCache
Get-DnsClient | Set-DnsClientServerAddress -ServerAddresses ("10.0.0.1")

#show Date/Time to compare against last successful replication later
get-date

#displays "Finished"
Write-Host "Finished" -ForegroundColor DarkGreen

########Mod04Ex4Fix.ps1#########
#Displays "Starting"
Write-Host "Starting" -ForegroundColor DarkGreen

#Fixes DNS
Clear-DnsClientCache
Get-DnsClient | Set-DnsClientServerAddress -ServerAddresses ("172.16.0.10")

#recreate Site links for LON-TOR and TOR-TEST
$schedule = New-Object -TypeName System.DirectoryServices.ActiveDirectory.ActiveDirectorySchedule;$schedule.ResetSchedule();$schedule.SetDailySchedule("Twelve","Zero","Sixteen","Zero");New-ADReplicationSiteLink "LON-TOR" -SitesIncluded LondonHQ,Toronto -Cost 60 -ReplicationSchedule $schedule
$schedule = New-Object -TypeName System.DirectoryServices.ActiveDirectory.ActiveDirectorySchedule;$schedule.ResetSchedule();$schedule.SetDailySchedule("Nine","Zero","Fifteen","Zero");New-ADReplicationSiteLink "TOR-TEST" -SitesIncluded Toronto,Test -Cost 60 -ReplicationSchedule $schedule
#Note Days of Week not set. Would need to build array. Reset manually in Active Directory Sites and Services.

#Recreate Subnets
New-ADReplicationSubnet -Name "172.16.0.0/24" -Site LondonHQ -Location "London,UK"
New-ADReplicationSubnet -Name "172.16.1.0/24" -Site Toronto -Location "Toronto,Canada"
New-ADReplicationSubnet -Name "172.16.100.0/24" -Site Test -Location "Test,Site"
#displays "Finished"
Write-Host "Finished" -ForegroundColor DarkGreen

Requirements

Familiarity with general Windows and Microsoft server administration and technologies

Description

This course is aimed to IT Pros and is supposed to give the viewer the information they need to know to get started with Active Directory (AD DS) and its key concepts. The goal is to provide coverage of AD DS components of advanced AD DS deployments, how to deploy a distributed AD DS environment and· Configure AD DS Sites and Replication.

The course is targeted to help learning Active Directory and do your job more efficiently.

After completing this course, you will be able to:

· Describe how AD DS replication works.

· Configure AD DS sites to help optimize authentication and replication traffic.

· Configure and monitor AD DS replication.

· Describe AD DS partitions.

· Explain how AD DS replication works within a site.

· Explain how to resolve replication conflicts.

· Explain how replication topology is generated.

· Explain how SYSVOL replication works.

Within an AD DS infrastructure, standard domain controllers replicate Active Directory information by using a multiple master replication model. This means that if a change occurs on one domain controller, that change then replicates to all other domain controllers in the domain, and potentially to all domain controllers throughout the entire forest. This lesson provides an overview of how AD DS replicates information between standard domain controllers and also read-only domain controllers (RODCs).

Who this course is for:

Active Directory Administrators
Windows Server Administrators
IT Specialists

Active Directory: Sites and Replication with a Lab

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Overview of AD DS replication8 lectures • 42min

Configuring AD DS sites8 lectures • 32min

Configuring and monitoring AD DS replication4 lectures • 18min

Lab2 lectures • 27min

An Azure-Based Lab Sites Configuration Example2 lectures • 14min

Practice Tests0

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: