Active Directory Upgrade to Windows Server 2016—Complete

As of early June, the Active Directory (UMROOT) domain controller* upgrade to new hardware running Windows Server 2016 (replacing the previous Windows Server 2012 R2 servers) is complete. This allows us to continue to benefit from mainstream support from Microsoft. Active Directory servers were added at the North Campus Data Center, and some were removed from the Administrative Services Building Data Center. The domain controller names and IP addresses changed.

Work Completed

May–June

  • The upgrade was being done in stages. One domain controller was upgraded at a time to avoid service disruption.
    • Friday, May 3—added ADPROD-DC-M1—Complete
    • Tuesday, May 7—added ADPROD-DC-N1—Complete
    • Friday, May 10—added ADPROD-DC-D1—Complete
    • Thursday, May 16—added ADPROD-DC-D2—Complete
    • Saturday, May 18—removed ITS-DC02 & ITS-DC-UMD01—Complete
    • Tuesday, May 21—added ADPROD-DC-M2—Complete
    • Thursday, May 23—added ADPROD-DC-N2—Complete
    • Tuesday, May 28—removed ITS-DC01 & ITS-DC03—Complete
    • Saturday, June 1—removed ITS-DC04 & ITS-DC-UMD02—Complete  

July

  • Distributed File System (DFS) root servers, and Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) upgraded.

Any Issues?

  • Let us know if you encounter problems that may be related to the upgrade. Reach the Identity and Access Management (IAM) Active Directory group via the ITS Service Center.

Communication Archive


* A domain controller is a Windows server that responds to security authentication requests (logging in, checking permissions, and so on) and is used by Microsoft Active Directory when granting access to computing resources. It is part of our Active Directory (UMROOT) infrastructure. General users will not notice any changes because of this infrastructure upgrade, but some IT staff will need to ensure compatibility of the services they run with the upgraded servers.