DC promotion steps

[dfortin]

Hello,

I have a windows 2000 domain controller which is currently responsible for file sharing, print sharing, dhcp, AD authentication, as well as dns.

Its an old server and needs to be de-promoted.

I have a windows 2k3 server that is currently a domain controller on my windows 2k network. It is replicating the AD from the 2k controller, as well as replicating its dns. It is not setup to take over the dhcp responsibilities yet. It has also been setup to be a file and print share dc. I have verified that it is indeed replicating AD information, because I can add users to it, or my 2k server and those users appear on both machines.

I have a mixed network with only win2k and 2k3 servers.

As I am a Unix guy, making this machine that I have created my authoritative domain controller makes me very nervous.

Please keep in mind that I know very little about DC promo, but I know that it needs to be executed in order for my new server to become the authoritative dc.

What steps do I need to take to make this happen??

Thanks in advance!

 

[billybunter]

Check this link out may help

http://www.svrops.com/svrops/documents/fsmo.htm

Once you have swopped all of the FSMO roles to the 2k3 server you will need to run dcpromo to demote the 2k dc to a member server but this isnt allways as easy at it suggest as I have found out check this out if it doesn't work

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q216498/.

when you have the 2k3 server as your DC with all the fsmo roles and demoted the 2k one are you going to have just one DC?

 

[dfortin]

Thank you for the information.

I plan on using the demoted 2k server as a member server, but it will not authenticate users onto the domain.

It will still be a print server, file server, and a backup AD server.

 

[billybunter]

If you want to use it as a backup AD server then don't do a dcpromo on the w2k server just swap the fsmo roles to the 2k3 sever and leave the 2k server as a DC and it will act like a backup DC like in NT