Virtualizing Microsoft® Business Critical Applications on VMware vSphere®

Chapter 4. Virtualizing Windows Server 2012 Domain Controllers

If you have any Windows computers on your network (and chances are if you’re reading this book, you do), there is a good chance your organization runs Active Directory. Introduced with Windows 2000, Active Directory provides the foundational infrastructure for any Microsoft network. Not only does it provide services like user authentication and group membership, but many Microsoft applications also directly integrate or extend the functionality provided by Active Directory. Some applications, such as Microsoft Exchange, simply won’t work without Active Directory. This makes Active Directory a critical component of most environments and a direct extension of many business critical ...