Managing Active Directory Trusts in Windows Server 2022
Posted on 17th June 2023
Introduction
Active Directory (AD) is a directory service that Microsoft developed for Windows domain networks. It is included in most Windows Server operating systems as a set of processes and services. Active Directory uses a number of proprietary protocols to communicate with clients and servers.
A trust is a relationship that exists between two Active Directory domains. The trust relationship allows users in one domain to be authenticated by a domain controller in the other domain. Trusts are transitive, which means that if Domain A trusts Domain B and Domain B trusts Domain C, then Domain A also trusts Domain C.
Types of Active Directory Trusts
There are three types of Active Directory trusts:
- External trust: This type of trust is used to authenticate users from a domain that is not part of the forest. External trusts are one-way or two-way.
- Forest trust: This type of trust is used to authenticate users from a domain in a different forest. Forest trusts are two-way.
- Domain trust: This type of trust is used to authenticate users from a child or parent domain in the same forest. Domain trusts are two-way.
Creating an Active Directory Trust
You can use the Active Directory Domains and Trusts console to create trusts. To open the console, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Domains and Trusts. In the console tree, right-click the domain for which you want to create the trust, and then click Properties. On the Trusts tab, click New Trust. The New Trust Wizard appears.
On the Welcome to the New Trust Wizard page, click Next. On the Trust Name page, type the DNS name of the domain with which you want to establish the trust, and then click Next. On the Trust Type page, select the type of trust that you want to create, and then click Next.
On the Direction of the Trust page, select the direction of the trust, and then click Next. On the Sides of the Trust page, select the side of the trust on which you want to create the trust relationship, and then click Next. If you are creating an external trust, the Outgoing Trust Authentication Level page appears.
On the Outgoing Trust Authentication Level page, select the authentication level for the outgoing trust, and then click Next. If you are creating an external trust, the Incoming Trust Authentication Level page appears. On the Incoming Trust Authentication Level page, select the authentication level for the incoming trust, and then click Next.
On the Trust Selections page, review your selections, and then click Next. On the Concluding the New Trust Wizard page, click Next, and then click Finish.
Testing the Trust
After you have created the trust, you should test it to verify that it is working correctly. To test the trust, you can use the Active Directory Domains and Trusts console or the Netdom trust command.
To test the trust by using the Active Directory Domains and Trusts console:
- Open the Active Directory Domains and Trusts console. In the console tree, click the domain that contains the trust that you want to test.
- On the View menu, click Users, Groups, and Computers as Containers.
- In the details pane, double-click the container that you want to test. The container opens and displays the contents.
- Click the container that you want to test in the console tree. On the Action menu, click Properties.
- On the General tab, in the Trust Type list, click the type of trust that you want to test.
To test the trust by using the Netdom trust command:
netdom trust <Domain> /domain:<DomainController> /quarantine:no /user:<User> /password:<Password>
Replace the <Domain> placeholder with the name of the domain that you want to test. Replace the <DomainController> placeholder with the name of a domain controller in the domain that you want to test. Replace the <User> placeholder with a user account that has permission to perform this action. Replace the <Password> placeholder with the password for the user account.
Conclusion
In this article, you have learned about Active Directory trusts and how to create and test them. Trusts are an important part of Active Directory and can be used to authenticate users in different domains.
Active Directory trust management is a complex and critical process in any Windows Server environment. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the key concepts and best practices for managing Active Directory trusts in Windows Server 2022.
First, let’s review the types of Active Directory trusts that are available:
1. External trusts: External trusts are used to connect two Active Directory forests that are not part of the same domain.
2. Forest trusts: Forest trusts are used to connect two Active Directory forests that are part of the same domain.
3. Shortcut trusts: Shortcut trusts are used to improve the performance of authentication requests between two Active Directory domains.
4. Domain trusts: Domain trusts are used to connect two Active Directory domains that are not part of the same forest.
When creating a new trust, it’s important to select the appropriate trust type based on your environment and requirements.
Once the trust type has been selected, the next step is to configure the trust settings. The most important setting to configure is the “Trust Direction” setting, which determines whether the trust is one-way or two-way.
One-way trusts allow users in one forest to access resources in another Forest, but not vice versa. Two-way trusts allow users in both Forests to access resources in either Forest.
Another important setting to configure is the “Trust Authentication” setting, which determines how authentication requests are processed between the two Forests. The most common setting is “Kerberos”, which uses the Kerberos protocol for authentication.
Once the trust settings have been configured, the next step is to create the actual trust. This can be done using the Active Directory Domains and Trusts snap-in, or by using the New-Object cmdlet in PowerShell.
Once the trust has been created, it’s important to test it to ensure that it’s working properly. The best way to do this is to try to access a resource in the trusted Forest from a computer in the trusting Forest.
If the trust is working properly, you should be able to access the resource without any issues. If you’re having problems accessing the resource, it’s likely that there’s an issue with the trust configuration.
Active Directory trusts are a critical part of any Windows Server environment. By following the best practices in this article, you can ensure that your trusts are configured properly and working as intended.
