Posted by arlene

Okay, it’s time to illustrate how the AD installation process works under Windows Server 2003. The example here is based on the Enterprise edition, but the process is similar for all other Windows Server 2003 variants (except for the web edition). To install the Active Directory on Windows Server 2003, follow these steps:

1. The first window that the Configure Your Server Wizard pops up after the installation is finished and you have logged on using the Administrator account.
2. When you click on the Add or Remove a Role button, the next window lists preliminary steps you should perform before continuing to select a role. For example, if you will use a modem or another peripheral device, they should be installed. Because this computer will host the Active Directory, and provide AD services to clients on a network, you need to be sure that you have one or more network cards installed.At this point you will need to have a connection to the Internet and have the Windows 2003 CD available—or know the network path that holds the Windows 2003 setup files. This is necessary because some roles, such as the Domain Name System (DNS) or the Active Directory will require copying additional files to your computer.
3. When you click the Next button, the wizard makes sure that you are connected to a local network or the Internet. If this is the case, the next window the wizard displays is the one. The Active Directory must be installed on a Domain Controller. In both Windows 2000 Server and Windows Server 2003, all domain controllers within a domain are equals, more or less. The distinction between Primary Domain Controllers (PDCs) and Backup Domain Controllers (BDCs) has been removed.
4. After you select Domain Controller (Active Directory) from the selections, click the Next button and the next wizard window will show you a summary of what you have selected. Click Next to continue.
5. The Welcome to the Active Directory Installation Wizard appears. Click Next and the wizard displays information such as earlier versions of Windows (Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0 with service pack 3 or earlier). Those earlier computers will not be able to log on to the Windows Server 2003 version of the Active Directory. Click Next to continue.
6. The next dialog box presented by the wizard is shown. Here you need to make a selection based on your current AD setup. You can choose to create a domain controller for a new domain, or install the AD on a domain controller in a domain that already has the Active Directory installed on another computer. For purposes of this example, a new domain control will be used.
7. Likewise, the next wizard dialog box asks whether this will be a new domain in a new forest forest is simply a collection of domain trees that can interact with each other. You can see that it is also possible to create a child domain within an existing domain. For example, you can create a domain called art.by.ono under the domain by.ono.
8. The third selection enables you to create another domain in an existing forest of AD trees. If you are setting up your first domain and your first instance of the Active Directory, select the first radio button and click Next. Otherwise, you will have already done this and should be cognizant of what the other two choices mean!
9. The next wizard dialog box asks you to enter the fully qualified domain name for the domain (that is, include the .com, .net, or other qualifier). After entering the domain name, click the Next button.
10. The next wizard screen enables you to enter a NetBIOS name that can be used by older Windows operating systems to access the directory. It is suggested that you use something similar to the domain name you entered. For example, the domain was zira.com. The suggested NetBIOS name is ZIRA. You can change this NetBIOS name or take the default. Click Next to continue.

    

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