XP in 2000 Domain issue..... does Microsoft know how to fix this??

[Allan McMillan]

Hi

We have recently updated over 200 client machines to
windows XP from windows 2000 and have run into a lot of
problems. The main issue's evolves around the following
event ID's.
Event ID 1054
Windows cannot obtain the domain controller name for your
computer network. (The specified domain either does not
exist or could not be contacted.). Group Policy processing
aborted.

Event ID 15
Automatic certificate enrollment for local system failed
to contact the active directory (0x8007054b). The
specified domain either does not exist or could not be
contacted.
Enrollment will not be performed.

All off the sites I check for have different answers
including reg fixes, DNS problems, Nic card stack
problems, XP service pack problems and a host of other
issues each more confusing than the last.

From the amount of hits you get when pasting these error
messages into a search engine I'm betting there's a much
bigger problem here with XP than anyone at Microsoft is
letting on. Hopefully I'm mistaken and someone knight in
shining armor from big M will come to all our rescues.

Just for your info here's a small list of what I've done
Changed Nic cards
Reinstalled XP
Tried service pack 1a
Tried a load of reg fixes
Change Xp to "wait for network connections" to represent a
2k boot (you know the syncrously asynchronously)
Looked into DNS issues (none found)

Now.... the only thing I can say for sure works is... wait
for it.... reinstalling windows 2000. All group policies
are applied with no error messages first time...........
Rules out every other problem other than the OS for
me......could someone please advice before I burn 200
copies of 2000......... Cheers

[Len]

There is one other variable that plays a LARGE role in these issues...
server setup! XP Pro is not W2K Pro and uses different rules to connect to
a server. Here is a NG message from Ron Lowe that covers some of these
issues, see if any apply:

Slow logon to Win2000 domain;
Inability to add domain users...

This is a classic DNS problem.
The problem is you are picking up an ISP's DNS server from the router.

Whilst the following is not a fix-all for all AD-domain problems,
it is an absolute requirement that DNS is set up correctly before
it will work properly. If your DNS is not set up like this, then
you will experience problems like you describe.

XP differs from previous versions of windows in that it uses
DNS as it's primary name resolution method for finding domain
controllers:

How Domain Controllers Are Located in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q314861

If DNS is misconfigured, XP will spend a lot of time waiting for it to
timeout before it tries using legacy NT4 sytle NetBIOS.
( Which may or may not work. )

1) Ensure that the XP clients are all configured to point to the DNS server
which hosts the AD domain. That will probably be the win2k server itself.
They should NOT be pointing an an ISP's DNS server.
An 'ipconfig /all' on the XP box should reveal ONLY the domain's DNS server.

(I'd recommend you shut down DHCP server on the router, and
configure the DHCP server on the win2000 server. You should then
use the DHCP server to push out the internal DNS server address. )

2) Ensure DNS server on win2k is configured to permit dynamic updates.
Ensure the win2k server points to itself as a DNS server.

3) For external ( internet ) name resolution, specify your ISP's DNS server
not on the clients, but in the forwarders tab of the win2k DNS server.

On the DNS server, if you cannot access the 'Forwarders' and 'Root Hints'
tabs because they are greyed out, that is because there is a root zone (".")
present on the DNS server. You MUST delete this root zone to permit the
server to forward unresolved queries to yout ISP or the root servers.
Accept any nags etc, and let it delete any corresponding reverse lookuop
zones if it asks.


The following articles may assist you in setting up DNS correctly:

Frequently Asked Questions About Windows 2000 DNS
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q291382
Setting Up the Domain Name System for Active Directory
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q237675
HOW TO: Configure DNS for Internet Access in Windows 2000
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q300202


--
Best Regards,
Ron Lowe.
MS-MVP - Windows Networking

Hope this helps!

Len
"Allan McMillan" > wrote in message
...
> Hi
>
> We have recently updated over 200 client machines to
> windows XP from windows 2000 and have run into a lot of
> problems. The main issue's evolves around the following
> event ID's.
> Event ID 1054
> Windows cannot obtain the domain controller name for your
> computer network. (The specified domain either does not
> exist or could not be contacted.). Group Policy processing
> aborted.
>
> Event ID 15
> Automatic certificate enrollment for local system failed
> to contact the active directory (0x8007054b). The
> specified domain either does not exist or could not be
> contacted.
> Enrollment will not be performed.
>
> All off the sites I check for have different answers
> including reg fixes, DNS problems, Nic card stack
> problems, XP service pack problems and a host of other
> issues each more confusing than the last.
>
> From the amount of hits you get when pasting these error
> messages into a search engine I'm betting there's a much
> bigger problem here with XP than anyone at Microsoft is
> letting on. Hopefully I'm mistaken and someone knight in
> shining armor from big M will come to all our rescues.
>
> Just for your info here's a small list of what I've done
> Changed Nic cards
> Reinstalled XP
> Tried service pack 1a
> Tried a load of reg fixes
> Change Xp to "wait for network connections" to represent a
> 2k boot (you know the syncrously asynchronously)
> Looked into DNS issues (none found)
>
> Now.... the only thing I can say for sure works is... wait
> for it.... reinstalling windows 2000. All group policies
> are applied with no error messages first time...........
> Rules out every other problem other than the OS for
> me......could someone please advice before I burn 200
> copies of 2000......... Cheers
>

[Steve Filler]

You are using XP Pro, right? Home will not join a domain, I am pretty sure
(helps sell Pro to more people?)

--
And hey! While you're at it, check out our website at www.teammexico.org!!
"Allan McMillan" > wrote in message
...
> Hi
>
> We have recently updated over 200 client machines to
> windows XP from windows 2000 and have run into a lot of
> problems. The main issue's evolves around the following
> event ID's.
> Event ID 1054
> Windows cannot obtain the domain controller name for your
> computer network. (The specified domain either does not
> exist or could not be contacted.). Group Policy processing
> aborted.
>
> Event ID 15
> Automatic certificate enrollment for local system failed
> to contact the active directory (0x8007054b). The
> specified domain either does not exist or could not be
> contacted.
> Enrollment will not be performed.
>
> All off the sites I check for have different answers
> including reg fixes, DNS problems, Nic card stack
> problems, XP service pack problems and a host of other
> issues each more confusing than the last.
>
> From the amount of hits you get when pasting these error
> messages into a search engine I'm betting there's a much
> bigger problem here with XP than anyone at Microsoft is
> letting on. Hopefully I'm mistaken and someone knight in
> shining armor from big M will come to all our rescues.
>
> Just for your info here's a small list of what I've done
> Changed Nic cards
> Reinstalled XP
> Tried service pack 1a
> Tried a load of reg fixes
> Change Xp to "wait for network connections" to represent a
> 2k boot (you know the syncrously asynchronously)
> Looked into DNS issues (none found)
>
> Now.... the only thing I can say for sure works is... wait
> for it.... reinstalling windows 2000. All group policies
> are applied with no error messages first time...........
> Rules out every other problem other than the OS for
> me......could someone please advice before I burn 200
> copies of 2000......... Cheers
>