Category: 1063

One of the new features in Active Directory Domain Services in Windows Server 2012 is Virtualization-safe(r) Active Directory. This feature makes it easier and safer to deploy and manage virtual Domain Controllers through the VM-GenerationID capability of the hypervisor platform.

A lot of organizations run Active Directory Domain Services as their Identity and Access Management (IAM) solutions. Their Domain Controllers unlock access to the simplified view on the organization’s processes, structure and systems, so people can perform the jobs they were hired to do. Just when you thought your Active Directory environment couldn’t get any … Continue reading "Common Challenges when Managing Active Directory Domain Services, Part 5: (Accidental) Misconfiguration"

Microsoft introduced Dynamic Access Control (DAC) as its claims-based authorization solution. It’s revolutionary, because it enables admins to more granularly control access to file resources, based on attributes of objects in Active Directory, like department, manager and country, instead of through an elaborate and obscure group membership structure and static Access Control Lists (ACLs) on … Continue reading "10 Things you need to be aware of before deploying Dynamic Access Control"

After last year’s TechEd North America (Orlando) and TechEd Europe (Amsterdam), but specifically after last week’s TechEd North America (New Orleans), I’m excited to share with you that I’ve been selected to staff the Access and Information Protection booth at TechEd Europe 2013 (Madrid)

Using Active Directory Domain Services as the solid foundation of your Identity and Access Management (IAM) strategy, results in common challenges for most organizations I meet. While the first three parts of this series have focused on objects and links between objects in the Active Directory database. Today, I want to talk about more ethereal … Continue reading "Common Challenges when Managing Active Directory Domain Services, Part 4: Attribute Integrity"

Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2012-based Domain Controllers (as well as Windows 7 and Windows 8 management workstations with the Remote Server Administration Tools installed) offer the built-in ability to manage Active Directory through PowerShell. Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 offer 76 Active Directory Management PowerShell Cmdlets and 15 Active Directory … Continue reading "KnowledgeBase: Incorrect results when you run AD Windows PowerShell Cmdlets on a Windows Server 2012 or Windows Server 2008 R2-based Domain Controller"

Microsoft identified an issue, where scans of the Active Directory Domain Services Best Practices Analyzer (BPA) fail. About the AD DS BPA Microsoft’s Best Practices Analyzers (BPAs) offer guidance on avoiding 80% to 90% of situations that lead to system unavailability and data loss.

Domain Controllers are the backbone of many networking environments in many organizations. Unavailability and a lack of performance of these servers quickly escalates into numerous helpdesk calls and employee disgruntlement. Many admins opt to beef up Domain Controllers with larger amounts of RAM, more processor power and more capable networking interface cards (NICs). Another avenue … Continue reading "Common Challenges when Managing Active Directory Domain Services, Part 3: Performance"

A lot of organizations run Active Directory Domain Services as their Identity and Access Management (IAM) solutions. Their Domain Controllers unlock access to the simplified view on the organization’s processes, structure and systems, so people can perform the jobs they were hired to do. Now, not every organization acknowledges the importance of an up to … Continue reading "Common Challenges when Managing Active Directory Domain Services, Part 2: Unnecessary Complexity and Token Bloat"

A while ago, I received a mail from TechEd. In it, the TechEd North America Staff Communications team congratulated me with being selected to participate as product subject matter expert, learning guide or ambassador at TechEd North America 2013!