ADMT2, cannot migrate computers, access denied

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From: W2K3Newbie (anonymous_at_discussions.microsoft.com)
Date: 02/10/04 

Date: Tue, 10 Feb 2004 09:49:24 -0800

I have a source NT4 domain with hundreds of workstations
(a mix of NT4 WKs, W2K Pro and XP Pro) and I've been
trying to use the computer migration task to move a few
test-case workstations from the old NT4 domain into my new
W2003 AD domain, and it always fails with various sorts
of "access denied" messages. I've carefully followed the
set-up rules for estabishing the trusts, etc, for setting
up the ADMT2 environment and I'm running the ADMT2 tool on
the console of the new W2003 server while logged in as
Administrator. I can successfully migrate users and groups
just fine, but not computers.

A bit of googling yields that I need to make the user I'm
running as in the destination domain (the W2003 AD domain
Adminstrator) to be a member of the local administrators
on the workstation I'm trying to move. If this is a
requirement to manually do this to each and every
workstation on my network, then this tool is completely
impractical, and I might as well manually move each
workstation from the old NT4 domain into the new W2003 AD
domain since I'll be having to visit each workstation
anyway. At least that way, I know for certain the
procedure gets completed correctly.

Also I read that if you could make the destination domain
user also a member of the source domain's global "Domain
Admins" group, then by default all those members are
automatically local admins too on all the workstations in
the source domain, but this is impossible to do... when
you open up the "User Manager for Domains" on the old NT4
PDC, and try to add new members to the "Domain Admins"
global group, you are only permitted to choose from
usernames within the source domain... there is no ability
to choose usernames from any other or trusted domains...
all you get is a "Not Members of" dialog box which only
lists usernames within that source domain.

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