What is a Domain Controller?

• A Domain Controller (DC) is a server in an Active Directory environment that manages network security, user authentication, and authorization. It stores the directory database, which contains user accounts, passwords, and other essential information about the network's resources and security policies. The DC ensures that users are who they claim to be, grants them access to the resources they need, and enforces security policies to maintain a secure and organized network. Essentially, it acts as the central authority for network management and security in an Active Directory infrastructure.

Lab Objective:

• In this lab, we will promote the Windows Server machine created in Lab 1 to the role of Domain Controller. It will act as the central point of authority for other Windows machines we join to the Active Directory environment we create.

Start your Windows Server Machine and Log in.

• Click the ‘Full Screen’ button at the top of VMWare so that the display takes up the entire screen.
  • (We’ll change this in the next step)

When working through labs like this, I find it’s helpful to scale down the display resolution.

• In the Windows Search bar within your VM, search for Display and select ‘Change the resolution of the display’

• This depends on the size of the monitor you are using, but select a display resolution that fits about half the screen. (If you are using a dual-monitor setup, you don’t have to deal with this!)

As stated in the previous lab, we are setting up a private LAN.

• I selected VMNET5 for the network adapter in Lab 1, which will not have any internet access. (yet!)
  • Note: (Key Sec+ Term): A computing device on a network segment that does not have any internet access either in or out is considered to be Air Gapped or Isolated
• We will set up an Active Directory environment within a private subnet.
  • For this lab, our private subnet will be 172.17.0.0/24

Inside the Server Manager application, select ‘Local Server’ and find the configuration for ‘Ethernet 0’

• A Domain Controller within any given environment must have a static IP Address.

Right-click on the adapter and click Properties