Share via


Add a member to a group

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To add a member to a group

  • Using the Windows interface

  • Using a command line

Using the Windows interface

  1. Open Active Directory Users and Computers.

  2. In the console tree, click the folder that contains the group to which you want to add a member.

    Where?

    • Active Directory Users and Computers/domain node/folder that contains the group
  3. In the details pane, right-click the group, and then click Properties.

  4. On the Members tab, click Add.

  5. In Enter the object names to select, type the name of the user, group, or computer that you want to add to the group, and then click OK.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • To open Active Directory Users and Computers, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Active Directory Users and Computers.

  • In addition to users and computers, membership in a particular group can include contacts and other groups.

  • To add members to a group, you can click the members you want to add, click

    Adds the selected objects to a group you specify on the toolbar, and then type the name of the group into which they will be added. You can also drag a member object to a group, or right-click the object, and then click Add to a group.

  • When you administer a domain, security principals in the parent domain or other trusted domains are not visible on the Member Of tab of a domain users properties. The only domain accounts that you can add or view are the present domain groups. Only domain groups in the present domain are shown, even if the member belongs to other trusted domain groups.

Using a command line

  1. Open Command Prompt.

  2. Type:

    dsmod groupGroupDN-addmbrMemberDN

Value Description

GroupDN

Specifies the distinguished name of the group object to which you want to add the object.

MemberDN

Specifies the distinguished name of the object that you want to add to the group.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command prompt.

  • In addition to users and computers, a group can contain contacts and other groups.

  • To view the complete syntax for this command, at a command prompt, type:

    dsmod group /?

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Understanding Groups
Finding directory information
Group scope
Dsmod
Working with MMC console files
Find a group
Command-line reference A-Z