Inside Active Directory: A System Administrator's Guide (2nd Edition) (Paperback)

~ Sakari Kouti (Author), Mika Seitsonen (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The most practical, comprehensive, and highly praised guide to Active Directory has now been fully updated for Windows Server 2003. The second edition of Inside Active Directory: A System Administrator’s Guide offers a definitive reference to the design, architecture, installation, and management of Active Directory, the cornerstone technology within Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003 distributed networks. This new edition—based on the final release software of Windows Server 2003—emphasizes security and covers all the new features, including enhancements in replication and Group Policy, forest trusts, functional levels, and working with dynamic objects.

Inside this core reference, you’ll find practical strategies for managing Active Directory, along with detailed instructions for efficiently administering your entire network operating environment. You will find detailed coverage of the following:

Site basics and replication topologies, processes, and diagnostics
Group Policy architecture, planning, management, and diagnostics
Security and permission architecture and management scenarios
Administration scripts, from basic concepts to advanced topics, including more than 50 sample scripts
New cross-forest security features, including Selective Authentication, SID Filtering, and Name Suffix Routing
A detailed drill-down to the schema, and practical strategies and examples for extending it
Using Active Directory hierarchies to implement an effective structure for your network

This is an indispensable reference for anyone working with Active Directory. Network operating system novices will gain a solid understanding of Active Directory, while administrators experienced in NT, NetWare, or UNIX will learn how to utilize their current skills in Active Directory. Experienced Windows 2000/Windows Server 2003 professionals will pick up advanced techniques, and developers will benefit strongly from the architecture topics.

From the Back Cover

Praise for the First Edition

“Trust me on this one...if you’re an Active Directory engineer or architect, this is the book you need. It’s the companion that’s going to help you keep your job if you’re up in the middle of the night trying to understand how something works or why it’s not working. It’s truly an amazing book.”

—Scott Rachui, MCSE and Senior Active Directory Engineer, author of MCSE Exchange Server 5.5 for Dummies

“This is the best book on Windows 2000 that I have read and one of the best computer books I have ever read. The most unique quality is the excellent explanation of how to use scripting to maximize your results and minimize your effort. This book is especially well suited to the enterprise audience that has to deploy many servers (100+) and not just 1-10. If you have even a small bit of programming experience, you will really appreciate the in-depth explanations of Windows 2000 under the covers.”

—Eric Chipko

“Wow!! I love this book. I’d trade all my books covering Active Directory for this book in a second. The material is covered at a depth that I haven’t seen in any other book—and I’ve looked at most of them. The material is presented in a straightforward manner that doesn’t put you to sleep. An NT4 administrator could easily read this book and become an expert at Active Directory. I especially appreciated the chapter on Active Directory security.”

—Brian Arkills, author of LDAP Directories Explained

Praise for the Second Edition

“If you are committed and really desire to know what makes Active Directory tick—and with it the backbone of the latest, and greatest, generation of Windows Network Operating Systems—then there is no better guide to get you there than this book. Inside Active Directory has no equal in the breadth, depth, and scope of its value to a technical practitioner.”

—Rick Kingslan, Microsoft MVP, Directory Services

“Kouti and Seitsonen provide excellent coverage of topics a lot of people have difficulty understanding and setting up properly. This book supplies you with sound background theory so you can understand these concepts and at the same time gives just the right amount of detail to actually accomplish what you are trying to do.”

—Harold McFarland, Editor, Readers Preference Reviews

“The style of this book is very appealing. It gives sufficient detail for the experienced administrator and explains what is happening ’behind the scenes’ at each step, which is extremely helpful when problems arise. An excellent read and an essential component for any skilled administrator!”

—Jeff Dunkelberger, Solutions Architect

“An outstanding refresh of an already great book, Inside Active Directory, Second Edition, should be in the toolbox of any serious Active Directory administrator, architect, or developer. Inside Active Directory is one of the five books I refer to on a weekly basis. Thanks to the authors for all their hard work and dedication.”

—Joe Richards, Microsoft MVP, Windows Server/Active Directory

The most practical, comprehensive, and highly praised guide to Active Directory has now been fully updated for Windows Server 2003. The second edition of Inside Active Directory: A System Administrator’s Guide offers a definitive reference to the design, architecture, installation, and management of Active Directory, the cornerstone technology within Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003 distributed networks. This new edition—based on the final release software of Windows Server 2003—emphasizes security and covers all the new features, including enhancements in replication and Group Policy, forest trusts, functional levels, and working with dynamic objects.

Inside this core reference, you’ll find practical strategies for managing Active Directory, along with detailed instructions for efficiently administering your entire network operating environment. You will find detailed coverage of the following:

• Site basics and replication topologies, processes, and diagnostics
• Group Policy architecture, planning, management, and diagnostics
• Security and permission architecture and management scenarios
• Administration scripts, from basic concepts to advanced topics, including more than 50 sample scripts
• New cross-forest security features, including Selective Authentication, SID Filtering, and Name Suffix Routing
• A detailed drill-down to the schema, and practical strategies and examples for extending it
• Using Active Directory hierarchies to implement an effective structure for your network

This is an indispensable reference for anyone working with Active Directory. Network operating system novices will gain a solid understanding of Active Directory, while administrators experienced in NT, NetWare, or UNIX will learn how to utilize their current skills in Active Directory. Experienced Windows 2000/Windows Server 2003 professionals will pick up advanced techniques, and developers will benefit strongly from the architecture topics.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 1248 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional; 2 edition (September 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0321228480
• ISBN-13: 978-0321228482
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #323,469 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely the Best Single Book on AD, March 27, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Inside Active Directory: A System Administrator's Guide (Microsoft Windows Server System Series) (Paperback)

Quite simply it is the best guide to Active Directory in a single book. The quality of writing is superb, it has the benefit of appearing a couple of years after the release of W2K and you can tell that the authors know their subject. I found information in this book that I have never seen anywhere else (like what AdminSDHolder does)! A direct competitor to this book would be Alistair G. Lowe-Norris "Windows 2000 Active Directory" but IMHO that book does not have the benefit of 2 years experience in the real-world.

Highlights are the chapters on AD security, replication, schema management and group policy. There are also two superb chapters on ADSI scripting.

However, there are some things it doesn't cover (wisely in my opinion as it would become too large). Specifically it does not cover migration or deployment planning. It also does not cover DNS planning in depth. These topics are large enough to require books on their own.

All in all if you want serious in-depth technical detail on managing AD, explained clearly and precisely (rare qualities in technical books) then this is the book to go for.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Resource for Administrators and Developers, October 4, 2004

By	Jase T. Wolfe - See all my reviews

There really is something to be said about second editions. The kinks have been worked out and the authors have just that much more experience to enrich the new text with. Refreshingly this title also doesn't assume that you have forgotten the existence of operating systems less than 2003 or that your experience is only within the Windows World; throughout the text are clue-ins for Windows NT administrators as well as those with a Novell background (both types displayed as bonus text and if you have experience in neither, you don't miss a thing). Without a doubt, if you are in charge of any aspect of the Active Directory (AD) - this is a must have.

It is amazing in what is included in this book. For administrators there is the most comprehensive overview of the AD you could want, covering everything from domain planning to single AD object creation. Included with general text are graphics and summary tables, so you're never having to dig for that needed quip of information you're just sure you read 50 pages back. Like to see the tie-in between the interface and where the data is stored in the registry, file system, or schema? It's in there. A bonus for administrators are chapters dedicated to topics such as LDAP/LDAP Searches, new Microsoft RSK utilities relating to AD and Group Policies, and even an administrative scripting overview with samples (not a scripting tutorial, and not all-inclusive of ADSI, but an excellent introduction and possibility revealer). For developers (and admins alike), everything you would want to know about the schema, from explanation of the schema and classes to extending the schema, is very well documented and demonstrated.

Unlike some titles where the information is a rehash of Microsoft White Papers, on-line help, or the authors own initial discoveries while learning the previously unknown system, it is crystal clear that the authors know the AD inside and out and have refined the presented experience in a very concise and easy to read manner. Anyone who must administer the AD should read this book - regardless of experience. Long after you've discovered new aspects you didn't know existed, this title will server as an excellent reference.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's all in here..., February 11, 2005

By	Peter O Dowd (Wellington New Zealand) - See all my reviews

I have an extensive library already on Active Directory. When I first got my hands on this book I wanted to test it out, see if it was worth adding to my collection. So I played a little game, I thought of things that should be in here, then looked in the book to see if they were there. This treasure hunt went on for a while consistently finding that the topics that should be in here are in here... So I switched tack, I started to read the index and see what I wouldn't expect to be in, if it was I'd be impressed... I was and am very impresses. Very soon I was hooked, this book really does explain the answers to many questions that commonly come up. There's a lot of books out there that explain Active Directory, but few that answer those nitty-gritty questions. This is one that does! Even if you've got a bookshelf full of AD books, check this out, it's a must... Well done Sakari and Mita..