Getting Started With Active Directory

1. Getting Started With Active Directory Or How to Bring Logic to Your Company’s 437 Domains

2. So Who is This Guy Anyway? • Founder and Chief Scientist Networks Are Our Lives, Inc! • Network and Directory services design • Security • Network Documentation • Systems management/monitoring deployment • Author • 3 Books and over 100 articles and product reviews • Currently with Network Computing • Contact: Networks Are Our Lives, Inc! hmarks@naol.com 1201 Hudson St. – Suite 1003s (866) 812-7611 Hoboken, NJ 07030 WWW.NAOL.COM

3. Why You’re Here • Functions and applications driving update • Just keeping up • With the market • Or the Joneses • Windows NT Timeline • Next week – OEM and retail sales end • 1/1/2003 4 – Hot-Fixes cost $ • 1/1/2004 5 – Live support and hot fixes end • 1/1/2005 6 – Online support ends • Easy way to get off helpdesk for 3 days

4. Our Objectives • Understand Active Directory • Components • Terminology • Structure • Features and benefits • Identify Best Practices • Implementation Tips

5. Make your life easier! Our Real Objective

6. Assumptions • You know: • Windows NT 4.0 Server • TCP/IP • You don’t know: • Active Directory • Group Policies Etc • You are: • Planning a Windows 2000+ server rollout • Have 50-10,000 users to support • Awake

7. ADS, then, is... • Extension of and replacement for Windows NT Domains • The directory service included in Windows 2000+ • Based on DNS, LDAP and X.500 • Active Directory Services are… • Secure • Distributed • Partitioned • Replicated

8. Before AD • Windows NT domains • Typical organization had master user domains and resource domains • Each domain needed: • WINS for NetBIOS names • DNS for internet names • The browser • Email, Application and other directories • Other vendors had true Directory Services: • Banyan Streetalk • Novell NDS (eDirectory)

9. Why Active Directory • Windows NT domains limited • Each domain an island • Trusts Stink • Too much work to set up • They “Rot Away” • Large organizations need thousands • Not Scalable • Single master replication • If PDC is down, or inaccessible, user’s can’t change passwords • No delegation of administration • Microsoft is forcing us that way • Exchange 2000 requiresAD

10. Basic Definitions • Forest • A group of domains joined into a common directory. The largest unit in AD. • All domains in forest share Schema, some administrators, 2 way trusts • Tree • Domains in a forest with common suffix • IE:US.AD.widget.com,EURO.AD.widget.com • Domain • Administrative and replication boundary • Conceptually the same as Windows NT but now corresponds to DNS domain • Domain controllers hold all the information about objects (users, groups, computers, Etc.) in their domain

11. More Definitions • Organizational Units (OU) • Administrative boundary smaller than domain • Contain objects for administrative, organizational purposes • Site • A group of systems with LAN  10Mbps • Site configuration effects replication • Defined by IP subnets • Global Catalog • A server that contains a subset of attributes for all objects in the forest • Think White Pages • Includes Email address, domain (so we can ask DC for more data)

12. Final Definitions • Kerberos • A Public Key Infrastructure based authentication system • Schema • All the attributes for all the objects are defined in the schema • Syntax defines the type of data that can be stored in the attribute • The schema definition for each object class identifies all the possible attributes for the object • The schema contains a default DACL for each object class • The default ACLs is used when an instance of the object is created in the directory

13. AD Design Choices • LDAP access • Protocol was becoming industry standard • X.500 data model • Object hierarchy permits subtree-scoped queries • Schema defines attributes and object classes • Attribute-level access control • Required for data sharing between applications • DNS-integrated object naming • Enables a globally unique namespace based on the de facto Internet locator service • Security • Multiple authentication paths, one authorization model • In-place or side-by-side upgrade • Learned from Novell: offer upgrade flexibility!

14. Replication Design Choices • Multi-master • Need local password update • Approximately “last writer wins” • Eventual convergence • Attribute granularity • When attribute changes, replicate entire new value • Reduces network traffic and lost updates versus object granularity • State-based • Send current state not a log • Predictable storage overhead, needed anyway for full sync • Implies tombstones for deletes • Transitive • Communicate update to somebody not everybody • Big win with mixed link speed - once per slow link • Automated topology generation (“KCC”)

15. Global Catalog Logical Structure Relationships Forest SAAB.CO.SA Tree Chevy.GM.COM NA.SAAB.CO.SA Tree Trucks.chevy.gm.com OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU OU Schema Objects

16. So What do We Get? • True Multi-Domain Integration • Transitive Trusts • Global Catalog • Group Policy Objects • Controllable Replication • Directory Security • Granular Administration

17. When to Use Multiple Trees • Public view requires different root domain names • IE: Kraft Foods doesn’t want .PhillipMorris.com suffix • Politics require divisions to keep their names • There is no technical advantage to multiple trees

18. When to use multiple forests • When, and only when, the service owners of multiple trees don’t trust each other • Multiple forest implementations do NOT: • Share a common global catalog • No exchange GAL • Trust each other • You can set up old style trusts between domains in different forests • Rule of thumb: 1 forest per CIO

19. Domain Controller Roles • Flexible Single Master Operations (FSMOs) • 1 Per Forest: • Domain Naming Master • Schema Master • Time Reference Server • 1 Per Domain: • PDC Emulator • RID (Relative ID)Master • Infrastructure Master • KCC/ ISTG (generates inter-site topology) • ISM (inter-site messaging) • Global catalog

20. Reasons for Creating Domains • Physical location • Network traffic • International differences • Administrative considerations • All users share restrictions (Password Length Etc) • Politics • NOT: Defining spheres of administration (OUs can do that)

21. Break sponsored by

22. What are OUs • They are distinct units of administration that can be delegated • They are containers that organize objects and other containers • Examples are geographic locations, projects, cost centers, business units, and divisions

23. Printers Users Groups OU Applications Computers OU Other OUs Security Policies File Shares What OUs Can Contain

24. Reasons for Creating OUs • Enhancing administrative control • Maintaining a consistent number of objects • Controlling application of group policy objects • Holding other OUs • Replacing windows NT 4.0 resource domains

25. Remember:Domains are Expensive • Every domain Must have a DC • Most should have 2-3 or more • Logins require connectivity to home DC • Logins more traffic than replication

26. Hierarchical OU Models • Geographic • Object-based • Cost center • Project-based • Division or business unit • Administration

27. Define an OU Naming Convention • OUs are not part of the DNS namespace • OUs are identified by LDAP and canonical names only • While domains are difficult to reorganize, OUs within domains can be easily renamed or moved

28. OU2 DACL for “Group” objects John can add users John can add users Groupobject Group object Delegating Administration OU1 DACL for “Group” objects Jill can add users • The ability to set ACLs for contained objects at OU level means that you can define “who can do what” to a particular object in the OU • Groups created in OU1 can be administered by Jill • Groups created in OU2 can be administered by John Jill can add users

29. Delegation of Control Wizard • Good news • There is a delegation of control wizard • Bad news • There is no undelegation of control wizard • After of delegation of control, the users must be given visibility permissions to the objects/containers they control • Learn to edit and document ACL’s • Only delegate control to groups, not users

30. Delegation of Control Wizard DEMO

31. ADS Security Features - Review • Objects have an Access Control List (ACL) • Permissions can be delegated to users by a higher authority • Inheritance allows permissions to be propagated to all objects in child containers • Trusts are established among all domains in an ADS forest • Explicit trusts can be established between domains in foreign forests or legacy NT domains

32. Group Types • Security Groups • Allow you to assign permissions • Allow you to use groups as an e-mail distribution list • Windows NT uses only security groups • Distribution Groups • Do not allow you to assign permissions • Allow you to use groups as an e-mail distribution list

33. Group Group members Can be a member of Global • User accounts and globalgroups from the same domain • Universal and domain local groupsin any domain • Global groups in the same domain Domain Local • User accounts, universal, and global groups from any domain • Domain local groups from the same domain • Domain local groups in thesame domain Universal • User accounts, universal, and global groups from any domain • Domain local or universal groupsin any domain Rules for Group Membership • Universal groups only available in native mode

34. Global Group • Limited membership • Use for access to resources in any domain Domain Local Group • Open membership • Use for access to resources in one domain Universal Group • Open membership • Use for access to resources in any domain Group Scopes

35. How does AD use DNS? • Windows 2000 uses DNS as a domain locator and name-to-IP translator • Domain controllers are registered in DNS • Clients query DNS to locate DCs • Analogous to Internet mail (the MX record) • Better-scaling long-term replacement for NetBIOS Name Services (aka WINS) • Requires DNS servers that support Dynamic Updates (Windows or Bind 8+)

36. Migrating to AD • Single Domain • Migrate in place • Clean up Later • 2-3 Domains • Migrate “root” domain in place • Use ADMT for additional domains • You’re stuck with SIDHistory • Bigger Now • Redesign from scratch • Use 3rd party tools from Aelita or NetIQ

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