Everything you need to get started with Active Directory

As a Microsoft Premier Field Engineer I frequently get asked for more information on Active Directory topics.  Most of the time I end up passing along one or more of the links in today's post.  I finally decided to put these all in one place for quick reference.  This list will be extremely valuable for anyone who wants to get started with Active Directory or even for a seasoned AD admin who wants to go deeper.

Blog etiquette says that I shouldn't use long, ugly URLs in the text of my post. But today I am including the full URL of each link in case you decide to copy and paste the links into an email

 

AD 101

Active Directory Domain Services Overview
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh831484.aspx

What is Active Directory?
https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/server-cloud/windows-server/active-directory-overview.aspx

Active Directory Services Overview (wiki)
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/1026.active-directory-services-overview.aspx

Microsoft Active Directory: An Introduction (Microsoft Virtual Academy video series)
https://channel9.msdn.com/Series/IntroToAD

Wiki: Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) Portal (Fantastic!)
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/13752.wiki-active-directory-domain-services-ad-ds-portal.aspx

Wiki: Active Directory Features in Different Versions of Windows Server
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/19037.active-directory-features-in-different-versions-of-windows-server.aspx

 

AskDS / AskPFEPlat

The AskDS blog remains the most amazing place on the internet to find deep technical answers to all of your AD questions.  Here are links to some of their best articles related to learning Active Directory.  Each of these posts contain links to key Active Directory information that every admin should know.
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2010/07/27/post-graduate-ad-studies.aspx
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2009/01/30/seeing-the-domains-through-the-forest-what-you-need-to-know-to-build-your-career-in-directory-services-technologies.aspx
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2010/06/25/friday-mail-sack-1970-s-conversion-van-edition.aspx (scroll to bottom)
And here are two bonus posts that I couldn't pass up.
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2011/12/08/effective-troubleshooting.aspx
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2011/09/02/accelerating-your-it-career.aspx

First, Do No Harm (DCPROMO checklist, highly recommended)
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askpfeplat/archive/2012/08/06/first-do-no-harm.aspx

 

White Paper Downloads

Active Directory Domain Services Operations Guide
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=16849

Best Practice Guide for Securing Active Directory Installations
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=16755

Best Practices for Delegating Active Directory Administration
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=21678

Windows Server 2008: Planning for Active Directory Forest Recovery
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=16506

Windows Server 2003 Active Directory Branch Office Guide
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=5838

Read-Only Domain Controller (RODC) Branch Office Guide
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=3608

Planning and Deploying Read-Only Domain Controllers
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=11003

Infrastructure Planning and Design: Active Directory Domain Services
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=732

Active Directory Migration Tool (ADMT) Guide: Migrating and Restructuring Active Directory Domains
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=19188

 

TechNet Library

How Active Directory Replication Topology Works
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc755994(WS.10).aspx

How Operations Masters Work
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc780487(WS.10).aspx

How the Windows Time Service Works
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc773013(WS.10).aspx

How the Data Store Works
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc772829(WS.10).aspx

Active Directory Maximum Limits - Scalability
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/active-directory-maximum-limits-scalability(WS.10).aspx

How Domain and Forest Trusts Work
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc773178(v=WS.10).aspx

Capacity Planning for Active Directory Domain Services
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/14355.capacity-planning-for-active-directory-domain-services.aspx

 

Understanding FSMOs

Phantoms, tombstones and the infrastructure master
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/248047

FSMO placement and optimization on Active Directory domain controllers
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/223346

Windows 2000 Active Directory FSMO roles
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/197132

 

Support KBs

Virus scanning recommendations for Enterprise computers that are running currently supported versions of Windows
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/822158

Service overview and network port requirements for the Windows Server system
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/832017

Things to consider when you host Active Directory domain controllers in virtual hosting environments
https://support.microsoft.com/kb/888794

 

DNS

How DNS Works
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc772774(WS.10).aspx

How DNS Support for Active Directory Works
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc759550(WS.10).aspx

DNS Technical Reference
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd197461(WS.10).aspx

DNS in Small Networks Step-by-Step Guide
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=11156

DNS Best Practices
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askds/archive/2010/07/17/friday-mail-sack-saturday-edition.aspx
Scroll half way down the article.

 

DNS Scavenging

Understanding Aging and Scavenging
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc771677.aspx
Note that Windows Server 2008 changed the way DNS records are refreshed. Be sure to note which version of the documentation you read based on your server operating system.

Optimizing your network to keep your DNS squeaky clean
https://blogs.technet.com/b/networking/archive/2009/02/09/optimizing-your-network-to-keep-your-dns-squeaky-clean.aspx

Don't be afraid of DNS Scavenging. Just be patient.
https://blogs.technet.com/b/networking/archive/2008/03/19/don-t-be-afraid-of-dns-scavenging-just-be-patient.aspx

A Complicated Scenario Regarding DNS and the DC Locator SRVs
https://blogs.technet.com/b/ad/archive/2008/08/08/a-complicated-scenario-regarding-dns-and-the-dc-locator-srvs.aspx

How DNS Scavenging and the DHCP Lease Duration Relate
https://blogs.technet.com/b/askpfe/archive/2011/06/03/how-dns-scavenging-and-the-dhcp-lease-duration-relate.aspx

 

PowerShell

Any administrator worth their salt MUST know PowerShell.  Here are some great links to help you get started.

Microsoft Virtual Academy - PowerShell
https://mva.microsoft.com/search/SearchResults.aspx?q=powershell

Microsoft Virtual Academy - PowerShell for Active Directory
https://aka.ms/MVAPSAD

 

Miscellaneous

Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 (SP1)
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displayLang=en&id=7887
This download gives you the admin tools on Windows 7. Enable them from Control Panel - Programs - Turn Windows features on or off - Remote Server Administration Tools.
 
MCITP Certification & Exams
https://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/mcitp.aspx#tab2
Use the exam guides linked here for a great list of topics to measure your knowledge.  If you see a term you don't recognize, then study it. 
 
TechNet Virtual Lab: Windows Server 2008 R2: What’s New in Active Directory
https://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032437246&culture=en-us
This is a free online lab where you can practice with Windows Server 2008 R2 and Active Directory.  It includes a 2008 R2 domain controller, a Server Core member server, and a Windows 7 client.
 
Windows Command Reference
https://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=2632
Wow! This CHM (compressed HTML) help file contains syntax and examples of nearly every Windows command line utility, including Active Directory commands. Every administrator needs a copy of this. Note: After downloading the file be sure to unblock it (Right click the file, Properties, click the Unblock button, OK). Then you will be able to view the contents.