Microsoft® Windows Server 2003: Administrator’s Companion

Using Active Directory Schema

The schema is the blueprint of Active Directory, dictating what kinds of objects can exist in the database and what the attributes of those objects are. To customize Active Directory for use on a network, you can modify the schema to create new object types, add new attributes to existing object types, and modify the type of information installed on an attribute. To do this, use the MMC snap-in called Active Directory Schema.

Modifying the schema is a task that the average administrator never has to perform. At most, you change the schema occasionally or perhaps only once. Modifying the schema is subject to the same cautions as modifying a Windows Server 2003 system’s registry, except on a larger scale. Just as ...