Part 3. Managing the Active Directory service

So far you’ve learned to manage the data in your Active Directory (users, groups, computers, and OUs) as well as the policies you apply to those objects (Group Policy and Fine-Grained Password Policies). In this section you’ll discover how to manage the underlying Active Directory service.

Domain controllers are essential to your Active Directory. They’re the machines that store a copy of the AD database and handle the authentication and authorization requests from your users. In chapter 11 you’ll learn how to create domain controllers. This information is extended in chapter 12 when you learn to manage your domain controllers.

The data stored in your Active Directory is vital to the wellbeing of your organization. The methods you can utilize to protect that data are described in chapter 13. The way that data is accessed and managed is an important aspect of protecting the data. Chapter 14 shows how to use Active Directory’s default groups and delegation techniques to control who can do what to your precious data.

A correctly configured DNS is essential for Active Directory. Chapter 15 teaches you how DNS works with AD and how you can manage your DNS implementation.

Active Directory replicates data between domain controllers. The replication topology is defined by AD Sites and Site Links. These, together with AD subnets, are the topic of chapter 16. Replication itself, and how to monitor it, are the subjects of chapter 17.