Re: Default tombstone lifetime

Tech Tip: Click here to run a free scan for Windows Errors and optimize PC performance

joe is correct on this... <not set> means 60 days and nothing else

180 days is configured when the first DC in the forest is W2K3 SP1.
everything lower than that or upgraded to SP1 is 60 days.

ARE you sure the install media is sliptstreamed WITH SP1 and it is not just
W2K3 RTM?

--

Cheers,
(HOPEFULLY THIS INFORMATION HELPS YOU!)

# Jorge de Almeida Pinto # MVP Windows Server - Directory Services

BLOG (WEB-BASED)--> http://blogs.dirteam.com/blogs/jorge/default.aspx
BLOG (RSS-FEEDS)--> http://blogs.dirteam.com/blogs/jorge/rss.aspx
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties and confers no rights!
* Always test before implementing!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#################################################
#################################################
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"David Chadwick" <david@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%231n9ITgrGHA.516@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi Jorge,

Thanks for your reply.

I realise that this is how it works. My question was actually about how
AD determines whether the tombstone lifetime is 60 days or 180 days at a
technical level. If you read the technet link that I have in my first
post, you will see that it states that in BOTH situations (with or without
SP1) the tombstoneLifetime attribute is set to "<not set>".

My question or observation was that it must then mean that AD falls back
to some other method of determining whether it is 60 or 180 days and I
wanted to know what that method was.

Joe says that the documentation is wrong and that it actually does set
that particular attribute to 180 days (rather than "<not set>") if you
create a forest on a SP1 machine, but that is not what I am seeing. I've
tried it several times, all from clean genuine VLK media and that
attribute is NEVER set for me.

Cheers,
David


"Jorge Silva" <jorgesilva_pt@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:evpYA7brGHA.4892@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi

In an Forest were you installed the 1st DC a Windows Server 2003 SP1he
new default tombstone-lifetime is tripled to 180 days. If you don't
dcpromo the forests first DC with SP1 already installed you'll still have
the default tombstone-lifetime of 60 days.


--
I hope that the information above helps you

Good Luck
Jorge Silva
MCSA
Systems Administrator

"David Chadwick" <david@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:%23k4d04JrGHA.3680@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi,

This is a question out of curiousity rather than a desperate need to
know. :)

The following Technet link explains what the default tombstone lifetime
for a domain is:
http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServer/en/library/f3df8a52-81ea-4a1d-9823-4e51fbd3422a1033.mspx?mfr=true

The default value for "tombstoneLifetime" is "<not set>".

The thing I find strange is that "<not set>" could either be 60 days or
180 days, depending on whether your forest root was initially created on
Windows 2000/2003 RTM or Windows 2003 SP1.

My question is where does AD ultimately pull this information from?
What I am trying to ask is - imagine you create your forest root with
Windows 2003 RTM. It is now years later and all your DCs are Windows
2003 SP1. Your tombstoneLifetime is still "<not set>", and in this
particular instance "<not set>" means 60 days.

How does AD "know" that "<not set>" means 60 days rather than 180 days?
There must be another attribute somewhere which defines this default,
surely? How does AD determine whether it was "initially 2003 RTM" and
therefore decide that the tombstone lifetime is 60 rather than 180 days.

I'm really curious about this. :)

Cheers,
David









.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: Default tombstone lifetime
    ... I haven't tested it with just SP1 and NOT R2 yet, ... Windows 2003 RTM - ... the one from SP1) they have forgotten to set the tombstone lifetime to 180 ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory)
  • Re: Default tombstone lifetime
    ... SP1. ... someone updated the file from 11/23 with the new tombstonelifetime. ... Joe Richards Microsoft MVP Windows Server Directory Services ... depending on whether your forest root was initially created ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory)
  • Re: DC Offline for 60 days?
    ... A new event error message is logged if you do not back up a Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 -based domain controller in a given time period ... Although Windows 2003 SP1 has by default a tombstone lifetime attribute = ... 180 days, this only applies to newly created forests with Windows 2003 SP1, if you have DCs that where upgraded to SP1, the ... Will a non-authoritative restore ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory)
  • Re: Default tombstone lifetime
    ... ARE you sure the install media is sliptstreamed WITH SP1 and it is not ... just W2K3 RTM? ... The following Technet link explains what the default tombstone lifetime ... on Windows 2000/2003 RTM or Windows 2003 SP1. ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory)
  • Re: Default tombstone lifetime
    ... you will see that it states that in BOTH situations (with or without SP1) ... The following Technet link explains what the default tombstone lifetime ... Windows 2000/2003 RTM or Windows 2003 SP1. ... I am trying to ask is - imagine you create your forest root with Windows ...
    (microsoft.public.windows.server.active_directory)