Removing NT 4.0 BDC from Windows 2000 AD environment

[Guest]

Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 server
environment.
Using Windows 2000 Active Directory

We have removed two Windows NT 4.0 BDC from our network.
They are physically gone. The Active Directory's Computer
OU still shows the two servers. What is the best way of
removing the servers from AD. Is it as simple as deleting
the server from the OU?

Old Server 1
Windows NT 4.0
BDC
Exchange 5.5
WINS

Old Server 2
Windows NT 4.0
PDC - Demoted to BDC when we upgraded to Windows 2000
File & Print services

TIA

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 server
environment.
Using Windows 2000 Active Directory

We have removed two Windows NT 4.0 BDC from our network.
They are physically gone. The Active Directory's Computer
OU still shows the two servers. What is the best way of
removing the servers from AD. Is it as simple as deleting
the server from the OU?

Old Server 1
Windows NT 4.0
BDC
Exchange 5.5
WINS

Old Server 2
Windows NT 4.0
PDC - Demoted to BDC when we upgraded to Windows 2000
File & Print services

TIA

Did you demote them before disconnecting them?

 

[Gautam Anand]

1. You dont just remove DCs from the network
2. You need to consider either putting them back on the network, doing a
DCPROMO on them to demote them to a member server in workgroup and that
would take care of removing them from the DC OU and also clean up their
entries from the AD

3. If they have been out of the network since a long time, i would advice
against putting them back on the network. Instead, you would need to do a
metadata cleanup on your domain to remove the lingering objects of these NT
DCs.

How to remove data in Active Directory after an unsuccessful domain
controller demotion
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=216498&product=nts40

 

[Michael C]

We didn't do the work. Do you mean demoting the servers
from BDC to File/Print servers?Is there a way to determine
if the servers were demoted properly?

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

We didn't do the work.

Smack whoever did.

Do you mean demoting the servers
from BDC to File/Print servers?

Member server, more appropriately....

Is there a way to determine
if the servers were demoted properly?

If you're seeing them in AD still, I reckon they didn't do it right. Check
out Gautam's reply below....it should get you fixed.

 

[Gautam Anand]

You would have to do a metadata cleanup on the domain. This is
in order to remove all the objects which have been left behind in
the AD.

How to remove data in Active Directory after an unsuccessful
domain controller demotion
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=216498

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

You would have to do a metadata cleanup on the domain.

Well, *I* don't, but Michael might.

 

[Guest]

Tia,

Yes it is that simple. As long as you don't plan to bring the computers
back online you can simply delete their accounts from the AD. As a standard
you do still want to make sure you have at least two DCs on the domain in
case one fails.

 

[Enkidu]

Did you demote them before disconnecting them?

They were NT4 so no way to demote them. I used a program called
UPromote to downgrade a BDC to member server once, but I don't know
that it was worth the trouble.

Cheers,

Cliff

 

[Enkidu]

1. You dont just remove DCs from the network
2. You need to consider either putting them back on the network, doing a
DCPROMO on them to demote them to a member server in workgroup and that
would take care of removing them from the DC OU and also clean up their
entries from the AD

3. If they have been out of the network since a long time, i would advice
against putting them back on the network. Instead, you would need to do a
metadata cleanup on your domain to remove the lingering objects of these NT
DCs.

How to remove data in Active Directory after an unsuccessful domain
controller demotion
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=216498&product=nts40

1) With NT BDCs that is the only option.

2) dcpromo doesn't work on NT servers.

3) If you are thinking of tombstone times, that doesn't apply to NT4
BDCs.

Cheers,

Cliff

 

[Lanwench [MVP - Exchange]]

They were NT4 so no way to demote them. I used a program called
UPromote to downgrade a BDC to member server once, but I don't know
that it was worth the trouble.

<smacks head>
Yes, it's been a long time since I've used NT4, and I lost track of what the
OS version was in this thread. My bad.