"The directory service is unavailable" when modifying sAMAccountName with Windows 11 22H2

Question

Hello

On my Windows 22H2 machine, I am unable to modify the sAMAccountName attribute on any account : I get "the directory service is unavailable" error.

This only happens on the sAMAccountName attribute.

All other attributes are working nicely. Only sAMAccountName is impacted.

I just updated to Windows 11 22H2

I installed the RSAT with

Add-WindowsCapability –online –Name Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools~~~~0.0.1.0

All available KBs are up-to-date.

This doesn't happen on any Windows 10.

I get the same error if I attempt the modification through code using System.DirectoryServices;

Thanks !

Answer 1

Hi. Thank you for your question and reaching out. I’d be more than happy to help you with your query.

The error message "The directory service is unavailable" when modifying the sAMAccountName attribute in Windows 11 22H2 can be caused by a number of issues. Here are a few troubleshooting steps you can try:

1. Check network connectivity: Make sure your computer is connected to the network and that you can access other network resources.
2. Check Domain controller availability: Make sure that your domain controllers are online and responding to requests.
3. Check for Active Directory replication: Make sure that Active Directory replication is working properly.
4. Check for permission issue: Make sure that the account you are using has the necessary permissions to modify the sAMAccountName attribute.
5. Check for the version of .net framework on the computer: Make sure that the version of .net framework installed on the computer is compatible with the version of Windows 11 22H2
6. Check for the GPO setting: Make sure that the GPO setting is not blocking the modification of sAMAccountName
7. Check for the service status: Make sure that the Directory Service is running and is not in a stopped state.
8. Check for hardware failure: Make sure that there is no hardware failure on the computer or the domain controller
9. Re-join the computer to the domain and check if the issue is resolved.

These steps should help you troubleshoot the issue and determine the cause of the error message "The directory service is unavailable" when modifying the sAMAccountName attribute in Windows 11 22H2. If the issue persists, you may want to contact Microsoft support for further assistance.

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