What is Active Directory?
Active Directory (AD) is a directory service developed by Microsoft for managing resources on a Windows domain network. It’s essentially a central database that stores information about all the users, computers, printers, and other devices connected to the network.
Here’s a breakdown of key aspects of Active Directory:
What does Active Directory do?
- Centralised management: Provides a single point of administration for all domain resources, simplifying user and device management.
- Authentication and authorisation: Authenticates users logging onto the network and authorises their access to specific resources based on permissions assigned to their user accounts or groups they belong to.
- Security: Enforces security policies like password complexity requirements and access controls to safeguard network resources.
- Group policy: Allows administrators to configure settings and policies that apply to groups of users or computers, ensuring consistency across the network.
- Scalability: Can accommodate large and growing networks with thousands of users and devices.
Components of Active Directory:
- Domain: A collection of computers and resources that share a central database and security policies. Think of it as a logical group within the network.
- Domain controllers (DCs): Servers that store and replicate the Active Directory database, ensuring all DCs have the latest information.
- Objects: Represent entities like users, computers, printers, and groups within the directory. Each object has attributes that define its properties and permissions.
- Organisational units (OUs): A way to organise objects hierarchically within the directory, simplifying administration for large networks.
Benefits of Active Directory:
- Improved security: Centralised authentication and authorisation enhance network security by controlling resource access.
- Simplified management: Easier to manage user accounts, groups, and device permissions from a single location.
- Scalability: Can grow and adapt to accommodate expanding network needs.
- Group policy: Ensures consistent settings and configurations across the network.
- Integration with Microsoft services: Integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft products like Microsoft 365 and Azure Active Directory.
Microsoft Azure Active Directory:
While Active Directory is traditionally used for on-premises networks, Microsoft also offers Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) for cloud-based environments. Azure AD provides similar functionalities for managing user identities and access in Microsoft’s cloud services like Office 365 and Microsoft Teams.
Is Active Directory still relevant?
While cloud-based solutions are gaining traction, Active Directory remains a core component for many on-premises Windows networks. It offers a robust and familiar directory service for managing resources and user access.
