Best Practices

• Use the automatically generated connection objects that are created by the KCC, unless a specific reason exists to hard-code replication pathways.

• Ensure that all your sites listed in DNS contain the appropriate SRV records.

• Ensure that the schema version has been upgraded to R2 levels before installing Windows Server 2003 R2 on any domain controllers.

• Use the repadmin and replmon tools to troubleshoot and validate Active Directory replication.

• Consider using IPv6 for environments consisting of Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 and other IPv6-compliant devices.

• Use IPv6 tunneling mechanisms such as ISATAP and 6to4 to provide long-term compatibility between IPv4 and IPv6.

• Install the AD client on down-level 95/98/NT client machines (or replace them) to ensure connection to the closest DC.

• Don't turn off site link bridging unless you want to make your domain controller replication dependent on the explicit site links that you have established.