Case Study – Decommissioning Domain Controller

Client in the Education Industry

Problem Statement​

Our client had been using Windows Small Business Server (SBS) for a long time as their domain controller and file server. Based in Melbourne, our IT support services professionals specialise in ​Managed IT services and other ​IT services in Melbourne​. As the client’s IT infrastructure was evolving rapidly, HIOD IT’s IT support services professionals solved the client’s problem of upgrading the domain controller to a newer version remotely, with downtime and no-in house IT.

Challenges

Since the client’s domain controller needed to be upgraded to a newer version, the following challenges were encountered:

  • Downtime needed
  • Strict deadline existed
  • Needed to be completed remotely
  • Client was worried about inconvenience to its staff

Solution

Our IT support professionals at HIOD IT delivered a successful result in this project with the following components in the solution:

  • ​Used remote management software from SolarWinds to access the host remotely
  • Deployed new server on the host and joined to the existing domain
  • ​Synced the old domain controller (DC) to the new one
  • ​Made new server primary domain controller and decommissioned the old server
  • No downtime
  • ​Met the deadline and completed project remotely
  • Client staff were not involved in the process at all
  • Completed the project smoothly without affecting user productivity

Final Outcome

A new active directory replaced the old server, which maintained 100 percent availability of the resources. The process was seamless and the client’s productivity was not affected, leaving a positive outcome for all.

Do you feel like your business requires an upgrade or are you facing any problems with your IT support? HIOD IT is an IT support company that provides the following ​IT Support Services in Melbourne​: