Enterprise Management Guide: Dissecting the Active Directory architecture

Dean Wells

Managing Active Directory can be a complicated and confusing process at times, even for the most experienced IT managers. Having a good understanding of Active Directory components is key to proper design, implementation and troubleshooting of a network.

In this series, expert Dean Wells breaks down several components of the Active Directory architecture, and offers advice for proper AD management.

Dissecting the Active Directory architecture

Part 1: Infrastructure Master

Part 2: Cross-references and phantoms

Part 3: Foreign security principals

Part 4: SID filtering and trust relationships

Part 5: Tickets, tokens and the authentication process

Part 6: SID filtering, usage scenarios and configuration

Dean Wells has been in the information technology industry since 1987 providing consulting and training services on the leading platforms. Originally from the U.K., he is now the Director of Technology Solutions and a co-founder of MSEtechnology, a consulting/training organization. Dean is a Microsoft Directory Services and Security MVP and delivers internal-only classes to Microsoft Product Support Services on Windows Infrastructure technologies.