Active Directory Administration Cookbook

Recommended practices for FSMO roles

Microsoft has published the following recommendations as part of Knowledge Base article 223346 (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/223346):

• Place the schema master on the PDCe of the forest root domain.
• Place the domain naming master on the forest root PDCe.
• Place the PDCe on your best hardware in a reliable hub site that contains replica domain controllers in the same Active Directory site and domain.
• Place the RID master on the domain PDCe in the same domain.

For a single domain in a single forest with the Active Directory Recycle Bin optional feature enabled, this means that all five FSMO roles can best be placed on one domain controller.

For an Active Directory forest with multiple domains, ...