Force Active Directory Replication between non-partners

[Antony13]

Hi all,

I am trying to get a script working which will automatically create users, then create their home drive on the approriate file server depending on location and whether they are laptop / desktop users etc.

I've got the majority of this done, but I need to force a replication from the local domain controller where the user is being created to the domain controller local to the file server where the home drive is being created in order to permission the new home drive with the new account. I was hoping to use repadmin or the SetReplicaSync command available in the IADsTools.dll but this seems to be limited to only replicate domain controllers which are direct partners of each other. Since this is not always going to be the case, I need a way to synchronise two domain controllers which are not direct replication partners.

Does anyone know if this is possible? It seems like quite a basic thing to me but wouldn't surprise me if Microsoft have left this ability out!!

Cheers, Antony

 

[buddafish]

have you tried creating a new connection object in 'active directory sites and services' ? if both servers are in the same site, expand that site and then the servers then click on the server you want to work with. in the right panel, right click in open space and choose new -> connection.

if they are in different sites, then you create site links.

my knowledge is only from studying for the 70-217, and have not needed to implemented this yet. if i remember corrrectly, the cost for this replication connection between the 2 servers should be less than other possible replication links. the default is 100. just interger weighting values for calculation purposes.

maybe a place to start,
scottie

 

[GlenJohnson]

which are not direct replication partners
Could you clarify this? How do you replicate when they aren't replication partners. Glen A. Johnson
Microsoft Certified Professional
glen@nellsgiftbox.com


"What really happens is trivial in comparison to what could occur."
Robert von Musil (1880-1942); Austrian author.

 

[Antony13]

Well basically we have 11 sites currently in a hub and spoke environment i.e. our main office has WAN links to all the other sites. The problem is, the helpdesk is not centralised so they may well create a user in one of the branch offices who has his home drive on one of the file servers in another branch office.

Normally, the replication would occur so that DC in the site where the user is created would replicate with one of the DCs in the main office and then this would then replicate with the DC in the branch office where the file server is.

What I wanted to do in the script is directly replicate the DC in the branch office where the user is created with the DC in the branch office where the file server is without going through a replication with the DC in the main office. When I tried this using the SetReplicaSync function in the IADsTools set, it fails as they don't have connections in the NTDS settings. I don't want to set that up as there's no WAN link between the two offices.

I have a feeling that I'm going to need to replicate to the main office first and then the branch office with the file server, but I just wondered if anyone knew a way I could do the above.

Cheers, Antony

 

[buddafish]

how about using the smtp protocol for the replication to this remote site dc ? this is a vaild choice for intersite replication.

scottie

 

[buddafish]

here is the link pertaining to my idea above:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/techinfo/planning/activedirectory/ismsmtp.asp

scottie