Active Directory Power off Duration

Question

Hello,

Currently i have 2 on-prem domain controller (DC) and 2 on azure VM, so we have 4 DC.

We have plan to decom all on-prem DC but before that i want to temporary shutdown my both on-prem DC. My question is there any specific how long we can shutdown the DC? I worries if i shutdown to long let say more than 3 days, then when the DC coming up we have issue with the replication.

Answer 1

Hello,

Thank you for posting in Q&A forum.

By default, the logical delete lifetime in Active Directory is 60 or 180 days (depending on the Windows Server version). This is the amount of time a deleted object (such as a DC) remains in Active Directory before being permanently deleted. If a DC is offline for longer than the logical lifetime, it may not replicate correctly when it comes back online.

In your case, if you plan to shut down a DC for a few days, this will generally not cause replication issues.

I recommend you refer to the following links: SOLVED: How Long Can A Domain Controller Be Offline? – Up & Running Inc – Tech How To's (urtech.ca)

Best Regards,

Yanhong Liu

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