You learned earlier that a domain controller is a Windows 2000 Server computer, which contains a copy of Active Directory for the domain and authenticates user logons. One or more domain controllers exist in each Windows 2000 domain. Creating a domain automatically creates the first domain controller for that domain.
After you create a domain, you should create an additional domain controller in the domain. In fact, Microsoft recommends that every domain have at least two domain controllers. Why? To provide fault tolerance and provide load balancing for Active Directory.
You begin the process of adding a domain controller to an existing domain in the same way that you begin the process of creating a root domain: Run
Dcpromo.exe
to start the Active Directory Installation Wizard.
The remaining steps for this process are outlined below:
- Click Additional domain controller for an existing domain. Specify the username, password, and domain name of a user account that has rights to create domain controllers in Active Directory, as shown here: