What is the Active Directory Database
The Active Directory Database is a hierarchical, distributed database that stores information about objects in a network. It is a critical component of Microsoft's Active Directory service, which is used to manage users, computers, groups, and other resources in a Windows domain.
The database contains the following types of objects:
1. User objects: Represent individual users and store attributes such as usernames, passwords, contact information, and group membership.
2. Computer objects: Represent computers joined to the domain and store attributes such as names, IP addresses, and operating system versions.
3. Group objects: Represent collections of users or computers and are used to provide access permissions and simplify administration.
4. Organizational Unit (OU) objects: Represent containers for grouping and organizing other objects, allowing for easier management and delegation of administrative tasks.
5. Security objects: Include access control lists (ACLs) that define user or group permissions and security policies for various resources in the network.
The Active Directory database is stored on domain controllers, which are servers responsible for replicating and maintaining the database across the network. It uses the Extensible Storage Engine (ESE) as its underlying database engine to provide high reliability, scalability, and performance.
Administrators can access and manage the Active Directory database using the Active Directory Users and Computers tool or programmatically through APIs provided by Microsoft.
The Active Directory database is a structured storage system that is used by Microsoft Active Directory (AD), a directory service created by Microsoft for Windows domain networks. It is responsible for storing and organizing information about network resources, such as users, groups, computers, and other objects.
The Active Directory database is composed of two main files: the NTDS.dit file and the Edb.chk file. The NTDS.dit file is the main component and contains the directory database itself, along with the schema, configuration, and global catalog data. The Edb.chk file is a checkpoint file used to track changes made to the database.
The database is stored on one or more domain controllers within an Active Directory domain. Each domain controller has a replica of the database, which is kept in sync with other domain controllers using a replication process.
The Active Directory database uses a hierarchical structure based on the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). It allows administrators to define and manage the relationships between objects, such as users belonging to specific groups or users being granted specific permissions on resources.
Overall, the Active Directory database provides a centralized and secure means of managing and organizing network resources in a Windows domain network.