Active Directory Question?

[popotech]

hello,
i have a makeshift network of about 80 pc's. i have all the users profiles setting as "Roaming" because they use them all over the building. the problem is that there passwords aren't stored in the profile and if they change their password on one pc and go to another pc later on in the day the password isn't changed on the next pc they go to. i have read about active directory and wondered if that was my answer. i don't have a "server" my profiles for the users are all stored on our companies AS400, Iseries or whatever name IBM wants to make it.
popotech

 

[snootalope]

You don't have a server? So what's authenicating users? If it's locally authenticated, um, there lies the problem.. good luck getting around it without a central point of authentication (like a server ;-))

So if you hit CTL+ALT+DEL and hit the change password button, is there some kind of Domain or just the local workstation? The only way for you to make your users change company wide is to be in a domain.. "tis better to remain silent and be thought of as a fool..
then open your mouth and remove all doubt" Mark Twain

"I should of been a doctor.." Me

 

[nickhills]

as snootalop says, your gonna have fun cracking this one without installing a nt/2k server!

you say all the users have roaming profiles, and that they are stored on an AS400...how have you done this, i'm not aware of any such method

ok, this is nicks brief guide to NT networking
each user has a profile, which can be strored locally (ie on a desktop machine) or on the network as a roaming profile. When the user logs on at a workstation, somthing has to authenticate them and check they have permission to access the machine. In a NT domain, it is the domain controler that performs this authentication. Once the server has verified that the user is permitted to access the workstation, it 'pushes' the users profile onto the client workstation, runs any login scripts and gives the user access to thier own desktop. The passwords are stored ONLY on the domain controler (as far as this explanation is concerned). Now when a user changes a password, it is modified on the server, so the next time the user logs on at the other side of the building, the updated password can be used. Without the domain controller to handle your authentication, i don't belive there is any way to implement roaming profiles (ie you may have set the type of profile to roaming for each user, but i don't think it will have any effect at all!)

going back to your original question - Active Directory is part of the install of a W2k Domain Server. so yes, if you had AD, what you are trying to do would be easy!

hope that helps,

Merry Christmas