Windows ADPREP 2003

[Asuman]

I'm having a new Dell Power vault which came with a pre-installed Windows 2003 server on it. I would like to make a domain controller, but at the moment i need to run the ADPREP.exe on my current domain controllers. The ADPREP 2003 utility is normally located on the Windows 2003 Server CD. Now the problem is that i did not get the Windows 2003 media with my Dell server, only a recovery CD. So, can any body tell me that how can i do it? Does any body knows about it? Kindly provide me the correct solution for the above issue.

[Milton.J]

First of all you need to check out whether is there adprep program been located on your new server's hard drive under c:\i386. The Adprep.exe utility prepares a Windows 2000 forest and its domain for the addition of Windows Server 2003 domain controllers. You run Adprep.exe from the I386 folder of the Windows Server 2003 media.

[Spyrus]

Active Directory forests are not vulnerable to this mangled display name problem if you use the Windows Server 2003 adprep /forestprep command to create the initial definition of the Secretary, the labeledURI, and the houseIdentifier attributes. Specifically, mangled LdapDisplayName attributes do not occur in the following scenarios:

• You run the Windows Server 2003 adprep /forestprep command in a Windows 2000 forest before you install Exchange 2000.
• You add Exchange 2000 to an existing Windows 2000 forest. You run the Inetorgpersonfix.ldf file before you run the Windows Server 2003 adprep /forestprep command.
• You add Exchange 2000 to an existing Windows 2000 forest. You then run the Exchange Server 2003 setup /forestprep command before you run the Windows Server 2003 adprep /forestprep command.

Mangled attributes may occur in Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003 forests if Exchange 2000 creates the initial definition of the Secretary, the houseIdentifier, and the labeledURI attributes in a Windows 2000 domain.

[Snake08]

ADPrep is located in the i386 directory of the Windows Server 2003 install media. Most hardware vendors copy the i386 directory there. If so, go to your 2000 box and run adprep from \\2003servername\c$\i386\adprep. You will NOT be able to add a 2003 DC without doing the /forestprep and /domainprep. It will give you a schema mismatch error. By default 2000 is schema version 13 (I believe), while 2003 is 30. 2003 R2 is 31. It will only extend Active Directory to give it more features, it won't remove anything that you have.