How to View the Current Operations Masters in Active Directory (Domain Controller Roles)

Practice



So, our task for today is to find out, in the current forest and the current domain, which domain controllers hold which operations master roles. That is, we're interested in:
  • Who is the schema master
  • Who is the domain naming master
  • Who is the domain's RID master
  • Who is the infrastructure master
  • Who is the primary domain controller

There are two ways: via the GUI (gathering information from different places) or via the console (all in one list, quickly and clearly).


Method 1. Via the console

Log on to a domain controller (for example, via RDP) and run the following via CMD:

C:\> ntdsutil
ntdsutil: roles
fsmo maintenance: connections
server connections: connect to server <servername>

Binding to <servername> ...
Connected to <servername> using the credentials of the local user.

server connections: quit
fsmo maintenance: select operation target
select operation target: list roles for connected server

Server "<servername>" knows about 5 roles
Schema - CN=NTDS Settings,CN=SERVER1,CN=Servers,CN=CENTER,CN=Sites,CN=Configurati
on,DC=hotels
Domain naming master - CN=NTDS Settings,CN=SERVER1,CN=Servers,CN=CENTER,CN=Sites,CN
=Configuration,DC=hotels
PDC - CN=NTDS Settings,CN=SERVER2,CN=Servers,CN=CENTER,CN=Sites,CN=Configuration,D
C=hotels
RID - CN=NTDS Settings,CN=SERVER2,CN=Servers,CN=CENTER,CN=Sites,CN=Configuration,D
C=hotels
Infrastructure - CN=NTDS Settings,CN=SERVER3,CN=Servers,CN=CENTER,CN=Sites,CN
=Configuration,DC=hotels

select operation target: quit
fsmo maintenance: quit
ntdsutil: quit

Here, instead of <servername>, specify the name of the domain controller server. For example, the one you're running this command from.

As you can see in the command output, the specified server knows who holds the operations master role for each role. The server names appear after the "CN=" entries (the second one — the first entry is always "NTDS Settings"). In our example, we can see that the operations masters are: SERVER1, SERVER2, and SERVER3.



Method 2. Via the GUI

Determining the primary domain controller, RID master, and infrastructure master

Three roles can be viewed in one place. There we'll see:
  • Primary domain controller
  • RID master
  • Infrastructure master

To do this:

1) Open:
Start -> Administrative Tools -> Active Directory Users and Computers

2) Right-click the name of the domain you need in the left part of the window and select "Operations Masters" from the menu.

3) In the window that opens there will be three tabs: "RID", "PDC" (primary domain controller), and "Infrastructure". Accordingly, by opening each tab you can see the current role holder in the top line.


Determining the server with the schema master role

To do this:

1) In order to see the "Active Directory Schema" snap-in, from which we'll be able to see the schema master, run the following (with local admin rights):

C:\> regsvr32 schmmgmt.dll

2) Now:

Start -> Run -> "mmc" -> Enter

3) In the empty MMC window that opens, click:

File -> Add/Remove Snap-in

4) Select the "Active Directory Schema" snap-in

5) Click OK

6) Right-click "Active Directory Schema" in MMC and select "Operations Master"

In the window that opens we can see the current holder of the "Schema Master" role in the top line.


Determining the server with the domain naming master role

Run:

Start -> Administrative Tools -> Active Directory Domains and Trusts

In the window that opens, right-click "Domains and Trusts" in the left part and select "Operations Master".

In the window that opens, in the top line we can see the current domain naming master.

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