Domain Functional Level Vs Forest

With windows server 2012 and r2 it is possible to roll back forest and domain functional level with limitation as defined in table in the link.

Domain functional level vs forest. In your case you have only two domain controllers and both of them have 2008 r2 installed. Under the general tab the domain functional level and forest functional level is displayed on the screen. Open up active directory domains and trust can be located in administrative tools right click on domain and click on properties. There are some explanations with the functions up to windows server 2008 r2 and some on the differences between windows server 2008 r2 and windows server 2012.

The main difference between forest and domain is that the forest is a collection of domain trees in an active directory while domain is a logical grouping of multiple objects in an active directory. The forest functional level ffl determines the features of active directory domain services ad ds that are enabled in a forest. Domain functional level and forest functional level can be seen in the general tab of properties. Overall an active directory is a directory service developed by microsoft that stores information on users network resources and files which is capable of organizing all user and resources into.

Forest and domain functional levels determine their capabilities and the operating system you run on dcs in the domain or forest. Today i recognized that it is not easy to find a comprehensive summary table about active directory domain and forest functional levels operating mode on the internet. If you have to revert to a lower functional level with a version of windows server that is earlier than windows server 2008 r2 you must rebuild the domain or forest or restore it from a backup copy. From the administrative tools menu select active directory domains and trusts or active directory users and computers.

Right click the root domain then select properties. Having compromised a windows domain one of the things i like to do that i think adds real value to the client is look at the domain functional level dfl forest functional level ffl. It specifies a minimum functional level at which all dcs operate. In this scenario the domain controllers block the transition to the forest functional level until all of the domains that are in the local area network are configured to native mode and the required attribute change is made in the security group scopes.

The forest functional level is set to 2 by using any method. When the functional level of a forest or domain within active directory is raised certain set of advanced features become available to the users. Before raising the forest functional level to 2008 r2 you have to make sure that every single dc in your environment is at least windows server 2008 r2 and every domain the same story.