Learning Directory

Organize your network resources by learning how to design, manage, and maintain Active Directory. Updated to cover Windows Server 2012, the fifth edition of this bestselling book gives you a thorough grounding in Microsoft’s network directory service by explaining concepts in an easy-to-understand, narrative style. You’ll negotiate a maze of technologies for deploying a scalable and reliable AD infrastructure, with new chapters on management tools, searching the AD database, authentication and security protocols, and Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS). This book provides real-world scenarios that let you apply what you’ve learned—ideal whether you’re a network administrator for a small business or a multinational enterprise. Upgrade Active Directory to Windows Server 2012 Learn the fundamentals, including how AD stores objects Use the AD Administrative Center and other management tools Learn to administer AD with Windows PowerShell Search and gather AD data, using the LDAP query syntax Understand how Group Policy functions Design a new Active Directory forest Examine the Kerberos security protocol Get a detailed look at the AD replication process

Summary Learn Active Directory Management in a Month of Lunches is a practical, hands-on tutorial designed for IT pros new to Active Directory. It skips the theory and concentrates on the day-to-day administration tasks you need to know to keep your network running smoothly. Just set aside an hour a day for a month—lunchtime would be perfect—and you'll be comfortable and productive with Active Directory before you know it. About the Book At the heart of your Windows network is Active Directory, the control center for administration, security, and other core management functions. If you're new to Active Directory administration—or if you find yourself unexpectedly thrust into that role—you'll need to get up to speed fast. Learn Active Directory Management in a Month of Lunches is a hands-on tutorial designed for IT pros new to Active Directory. Without assuming previous administration experience, the book starts by walking you through the most important day-to-day system management tasks. You'll learn how to administer AD both from the GUI tools built into Windows and by using PowerShell at the command line. Along the way, you'll touch on best practices for managing user access, setting group policies, automating backups, and more. This book assumes no prior experience with Active Directory or Windows administration. Examples are based in Windows Server 2012 Purchase of the print book includes a free eBook in PDF, Kindle, and ePub formats from Manning Publications. What's Inside ADM tasks you'll need every day GUI and command line techniques Content tested by new administrators Well-illustrated, clearly explained examples About the Author Richard Siddaway is an experienced all-around Windows administrator with two decades of experience. He's the author of PowerShell in Practice andPowerShell and WMI, and coauthor of PowerShell in Depth. Table of Contents PART 1 MANAGING ACTIVE DIRECTORY DATA Before you begin Creating user accounts Managing user accounts Managing groups Troubleshooting users and groups Managing computer accounts Managing organizational units PART 2 MANAGING GROUP POLICY Creating Group Policies Managing Group Policies Fine-grained password policies PART 3 MANAGING THE ACTIVE DIRECTORY SERVICE Creating domain controllers Managing domain controllers Protecting AD data Security: Default groups and delegation Managing DNS Managing sites and subnets AD replication Managing AD trusts PART 4 MAINTENANCE AND TROUBLESHOOTING Troubleshooting your AD Maintaining and monitoring Active Directory Future work and final exam Into the cloud