2008-04-09 21:32:04

Windows Server 2008 Core: Networking

In my last article on 2008, I showed some basic operations that you pretty much need to know to work with 2008 Core. In this article, I get a little specific, focusing on general networking with your new server. In future articles, I'll go into details on adding services and maybe even give a lesson on the Windows Management Instrumentation Console (WMIC).

Change the hostname

During the install process, there is minimal user interaction. You are not prompted for a hostname, so you end up with a randomly generated hostname. First, you need to find out what your machine is named, then you can change it.

> hostname WIN-A3CK4LR5RQ4 > netdom renamecomputer WIN-A3CK4LR5RQ4 /NewName:VMhost

Set a static IP address

There are 2 commands here. The first is to get the ID of the interface which you want to configure, and the second is to set the IP address. If you find you really didn't want a static address, you can set source=dhcp and you're back where you started.

> netsh interface ipv4 show interfaces Idx Met MTU State Name --- --- ----- ----------- ------------------- 2 10 1500 connected Local Area Connection 1 50 4294967295 connected Loopback Pseudo-Interface 1 > netsh interface ipv4 set address name="2" source=static address=192.168.1.20 mask=255.255.255.0 gateway=192.168.1.1

Configure DNS lookup

Of note here is the "index." This is how you set the order of your DNS servers, what you normally think of as primary, secondary, and tertiary.

> netsh interface ipv4 add dnsserver name="2" address=192.168.1.5 index=1 > netsh interface ipv4 add dnsserver name="2" address=192.168.2.5 index=2

Joining an existing domain

Joining an existing domain is pretty simple. You specify the machine, the domain, and the user with permission to join machines to the domain. Notice the letter "D" after "User" and "Password." Those are necessary. There are two other options, "UserO" and "PasswordO," which are used if the domain username doesn't have permission on the machine.

> netdom join VMhost /Domain:ad.slonkak.com /UserD:slonkak /PasswordD:*

Creating a new Forest

If you're lucky enough to not have any baggage (i.e. A current forest to upgrade) you can promote your new 2008 server to be the first Domain Controller in a new Forest. Since there is no GUI Active Directory wizard in Core, you have to specify everything on the command line. I'll explain some of the not-so-noticeable options. ConfirmGc is used to make this Domain Controller a Global Catalog or not. ForestLevel has 3 options, 0, 2, or 3. 0 being Windows 2000 mode, 2 being Windows 2003 mode, and 3 being Windows 2008 mode. NewDomain is used to make a new Forest, a new domain Tree in an existing forest, or a Child of an existing domain. ReplicaOrNewDomain is to specify an additional Replica (domain controller), a ReadOnlyReplica (RODC), or a new Domain. SiteName is to set the name of the default site so it isn't Default-First-Site-Name.

> dcpromo /ConfirmGc:Yes /DomainNetBiosName:"slonkak" /ForestLevel:3 /InstallDNS:Yes /NewDomain:Forest /NewDomainDNSName:"slonkak.com" /ReplicaOrNewDomain:Domain /SafeModeAdminPassword:"S3cr3tP@$$w0rd" /SiteName:"Johnstown"

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