How to Install Active Directory On Windows Server 2008 R2

How to Install Active Directory On Windows Server 2008 R2

Active Directory is essential to any Microsoft network built on the client-server network model–it allows you to have a central sever called a Domain Controller (DC) that does authentication for your entire network. Instead of people logging on to the local machines they authenticate against your DC. Lets take a look at how to install Microsoft’s Active Directory.

Installation

Open Server Manager and click on roles, this will bring up the Roles Summary on the right hand side where you can click on the Add Roles link.

This will bring up the Add Roles Wizard where you can click on next to see a list of available Roles. Select Active Directory Domain Services from the list, you will be told that you need to add some features, click on the Add Required Features button and click next to move on.

A brief introduction to Active Directory will be displayed as well as a few links to additional resources, you can just click next to skip past here and click install to start installing the binaries for Active Directory.

 When the installation is finished you will be shown a success message, just click close.

Configuration

Open up Server Manager, expand Roles and click on Active Directory Domain Services. On the right hand side click on the Run the Active Directory Domain Services Installation Wizard (dcpromo.exe) link.

 This will kick off another wizard, this time to configure the settings for you domain, click next to continue.

The message that is shown now relates to older clients that do not support the new cryptographic algorithms supported by Server 2008 R2, these are used by default in Server 2008 R2, click next to move on.

Choose to create a new domain in a new forest.

Now you can name your domain, we will be using a .local domain the reason why will be explained in an upcoming article.

Since this is the first DC in our domain we can change our forest functional level to Server 2008 R2.

We want to include DNS in our installation as this will allow us to have an AD Integrated DNS Zone, when you click next you will be prompted with a message just click yes to continue.

You will need to choose a place to store log files, it is a best practice to store the database and SYSVOL folder on one drive and the log files on a separate drive, but since this is in a lab environment I will just leave them all on the same drive.

Choose a STRONG Active Directory Restore Mode Password and click next twice to kick off the configuration.

You will be able to see what components are being installed by looking in the following box.

When its done you will be notified and required to reboot your PC.

That’s all  there is to it guys, now you have a working installation of Active Directory.

How to Install and Manage Active Directory on Server 2008 R2 Core

How to Install and Manage Active Directory on Server 2008 R2 Core

Installing Active Directory on Server Core is not a task that can be achieved using  the Optional Component Setup tool–instead we actually have to use DCPROMO from the command line. Here’s how to do it.

Note: this is part of our ongoing series teaching IT administration basics, and might not apply to everybody.

Before we install Active Directory there are a few things that need to be done first–we need to set static IP information for the network adapter as well as change the name of our server. This all needs to be done from the command line, so lets take a look at how to go about doing these tasks.

Setting a Static IP Address

Active Directory requires that the Server has a static IP assigned, so we need to get a list of the network adapters attached to this server. To do this we use a netsh command:

( netsh interface ipv4 show interface )

Now that you can see the names of all the network cards in your machine, you can change the settings for a specific card. To change the IP address we again use the netsh command:

( netsh interface ipv4 set address name=”Local Area Connection” source=”static” address=”10.10.10.1″ mask=”255.255.255.0″ gateway=”10.10.10.254″ )

Where the following values should be substituted:

• Name – Name of the interface that you wish to change the settings for
• Address – IP address that you want to assign the interface
• Mask – The subnet mask for the interface
• Gateway – The default gateway for the interface

To set up DNS information for the server, we run the following command:


( netsh interface ipv4 add dnsservers name=”Local Area Connection” address=”127.0.0.1″ index=1 validate=no )


Where the following values should be substituted:

• Name – Name of the interface that you wish to change the settings for
• Address – IP address of the DNS Server (we are using the loopback address)
• Index – Specify 1 to set the Primary DNS Server, Specify 2 to set the Secondary DNS Server

 

Changing The Computer Name

We would also want to rename the server before promoting it to a domain controller, to do that we use the netdom command. You should substitute DC1 in the following command, to whatever you want to call your server.

( netdom renamecomputer %computername% /newname:DC1 )

 

For the changes to take effect you need to reboot your PC, to do this from the command line run the following command:

( shutdown /r /t 0 )

Installing Active Directory

There is a couple of ways to install Active Directory on a Server Core, however we will go with the answer file method. So I have created an answer file (seen in the screenshot below) this is a basic answer file but if you have special needs you should see  this TechNet article which will give you a full list of parameters. You can create a file exactly like this in notepad and  just call it DCPROMO.txt

 

So what does this do:

• Creates a new domain at the root of a new forest called howtogeek.local
• Sets the forest functional level to Server 2008 R2
• Installs DNS with an Active Directory Integrated Zone
• Makes this sever a Global Catalog
• Sets the AD Restore Mode password to Pa$$w0rd
• Reboots on completion

You use the answer files by running the following command:

( dcpromo :/unattend:”path to answer file” )
 

This will kick off the installation of Active Directory and reboot on completion.

That’s all there is to installing Active Directory on Server Core.

Managing Active Directory

The easiest way to manage a Server Core Server is to use the RSAT (Remote Server Administrator Tools) which allows you to load up MMC consoles on any Windows 7 machine and connect to an instance of the role running on the server. You can grab the RSAT from here. The installation is in the form of a Windows Update, once installed open the Turn Windows features on or off option from the Programs and Features section in Control Panel. You need to add the AD DS Snap-ins and Command-line tools, check the screenshot to see how to get there.

Once the components have been added, you can open a run box by hitting the Windows + R key combination and type MMC before hitting enter.

This will open a blank MMC console, click on file and then choose Add/Remove Snap-in..

Choose Active Directory Users and Computers from the list and hit the Add button.

If you are logged in with a Domain Admin account, it will automatically connect to the Active Directory instance, if not you will have to connect to it manually.

How To Install Windows Server 2008 R2

How To Install Windows Server 2008 R2

 

Windows Server 2008 R2 is the latest version of Microsoft’s Windows Server operating system. Microsoft tries their best to make each task as simple as possible, and Server 2008 R2 is a shining example of that goal in action. We’re going to take you through a basic install and show you just how easy it is.

A Basic Install

After booting up from your install disk, you will arrive at a language and preferences screen. Once you have chosen those options, you get to the Operating System Selection page. Depending on your license and the purpose of your server, there are a variety of options to choose from. For our purpose today, we are going to choose the Enterprise (Full Installation) version.

We get to read the standard End User License Agreement.
 

Since we’re doing a base install and not an upgrade, so we choose the Custom (advanced) option.

We’ve got a blank 24 GB disk, so we’re just going to install it there. If you want to create a partition out of the available drive space or reformat a drive, then choose Drive options (advanced).

 

Windows will take a little while with your install, and reboot a few times.

Once the install is finished, we’re prompted to change our password before logging in.

Windows requires that you have a strong password, seven characters long with at least three of the four following: uppercase letter, lowercase letter, numeral, or symbol. You’ll want to make sure you write it down somewhere for now, because if you forget it later, the entire install will have to be re-done.

The Initial Configuration Tasks window pops up as soon as you logon. You could also type in Oobe.exe in the Command Prompt to arrive here.

 

One of the first things we want to correct is the time, so choose Set time zone. Make sure that you set the time zone first, because the the date and time will shift after.

 

Next we want to choose Configure Networking. The first server installed in a network needs to be a Domain Controller, and since they require a static IP, we are going to need to set one up now. Double-click on Local Area Connection, and once the information box pops up, click on Properties.

 

Click on Internet Protocol Version 4 in the Networking box, then click Properties. Change the radial button to Use the following IP address: and then enter the settings for your specific server and network IP addresses. When you’re finished, click OK to save those settings.

Finished!

That’s all there is to doing a base install of Windows Server 2008 R2. We’re using VMware, but if you are using any virtualization software for your install, this is the point where we advise taking a snapshot, as we haven’t yet set any roles or functions for this server and it will save time later to just clone up a base install like we’ve just done. From here you can give this server roles like Directory or Certificate Services, but those topics will be addressed in separate articles.