Active Directory, Second Edition

When Microsoft introduced Windows 2000, the most important change was the inclusion of Active Directory. With many great benefits, it continues to be a huge headache for network and system administrators to design, implement and support. The first edition of this book, O'Reilly's best-selling __Windows 2000 Active Directory__, eased their pain considerably. Now titled __Active Directory__, 2nd Edition, this book provides system and network administrators, IT professionals, technical project managers, and programmers with a clear, detailed look at Active Directory for both Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003. The upgraded Active Directory that ships with Windows Server 2003 has over 100 new and enhanced features and once again, O'Reilly has the answers to puzzling questions. While Microsoft's documentation serves as an important reference, __Active Directory__, 2nd Edition is a guide to help the curious (and weary) understand the big picture. In addition to the technical details for implementing Active Directory, several new and significantly enhanced chapters describe the numerous features that have been updated or added in Windows Server 2003 along with coverage of new programmatic interfaces that are available to manage it. After reading the book you will be familiar with the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), multi-master replication, Domain Name System (DNS), Group Policy, and the Active Directory Schema, among many other topics. Authors Robbie Allen and Alistair G. Lowe-Norris are experienced veterans with real-world experience. Robbie is a Senior Systems Architect in the Advanced Services Technology Group at Cisco Systems. He was instrumental in the deployment and automation of Active Directory, DNS and DHCP at Cisco, and is now working on network automation tools. Alistair is an enterprise program manager for Microsoft U.K. and previously worked for Leicester University as the project manager and technical lead of the Rapid Deployment Program for Windows 2000. __Active Directory__, 2nd Edition will guide you through the maze of concepts, design issues and scripting options enabling you to get the most out of your deployment.

Working with Microsoft's network directory service for the first time can be a headache for system and network administrators, IT professionals, technical project managers, and programmers alike. This authoritative guide is meant to relieve that pain. Instead of going through the graphical user interface screen by screen, O'Reilly's bestselling Active Directory tells you how to design, manage, and maintain a small, medium, or enterprise Active Directory infrastructure.

Fully updated to cover Active Directory for Windows Server 2003 SP1 and R2, this third edition is full of important updates and corrections. It's perfect for all Active Directory administrators, whether you manage a single server or a global multinational with thousands of servers.

Active Directory, 3rd Edition is divided into three parts. Part I introduces much of how Active Directory works, giving you a thorough grounding in its concepts. Some of the topics include Active Directory replication, the schema, application partitions, group policies, and interaction with DNS. Part II details the issues around properly designing the directory infrastructure. Topics include designing the namespace, creating a site topology, designing group policies for locking down client settings, auditing, permissions, backup and recovery, and a look at Microsoft's future direction with Directory Services. Part III covers how to create and manipulate users, groups, printers, and other objects that you may need in your everyday management of Active Directory.

If you want a book that lays bare the design and management of an enterprise or departmental Active Directory, then look no further. Active Directory, 3rd Edition will quickly earn its place among the books you don't want to be without.

When Microsoft introduced Windows 2000, the most important change was the inclusion of Active Directory. Along with many great benefits, it continues to be a huge headache for network and system administrators to design, implement, and support. The first edition of this book, O'Reilly's best-selling Windows 2000 Active Directory, eased their pain considerably. Now titled Active Directory, Second Edition, this book provides system and network administrators, IT professionals, technical project managers, and programmers with a clear, detailed look at Active Directory for both Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003.The upgraded Active Directory that ships with Windows Server 2003 has over 100 new and enhanced features and once again, O'Reilly has the answers to puzzling questions. While Microsoft's documentation serves as an important reference, Active Directory, Second Edition is a guide to help the curious (and weary) understand the big picture. In addition to the technical details for implementing Active Directory, several new and significantly enhanced chapters describe the numerous features that have been updated or added in Windows Server 2003, along with coverage of new programmatic interfaces that are available to manage it. After reading this book, you will be familiar with Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), multi-master replication, Domain Name System (DNS), Group Policies, and Active Directory Schema -- among many other topics. Active Directory, Second Edition will guide you through the maze of concepts, design issues, and scripting options in Active Directory, enabling you to get the most out of your deployment. Windows 2000 Active Directory is a notably authoritative and engaging guide to the Microsoft Active Directory (AD) for any administrator or developer making the move to the new Windows and this powerful directory standard.Articulate and technically astute, the author comes across as a trusted advisor, providing an expert's view of designing the layout of your company's Active Directory schema. In realistic terms, he shows you how AD can coexist with Unix directories. The book not only provides a collection of screen shots (though there are hands-on tutorials for specific tasks) but also a nicely in-depth tour of what Internet directories are and what advantages Active Directory offers. Case studies on sample domains and organization units (OUs) for sample companies, including a model global corporation, will help you cope with the design of even the most complex directories. Hints for limiting "domains" and favoring the more flexible "organizational units" (OUs) will also help you think in Windows 2000 terms.