Abstract: A secure communication channel can be established between a recovery console and a recovery agent during an Active Directory disaster recovery. This secure channel can be established without employing the Kerberos or NT LAN Manager (NTLM) authentication protocols. Therefore, the recovery console and recovery agent will be able to establish a secure channel even when the domain controller is in Directory Services Restore Mode (DSRM) and NTLM is disabled. A secure channel can be established between the recovery console and the recovery agent based on the Microsoft Secure Channel (Schanel) Security Support Provider (SSP). The Schannel implementation can be modified in a manner that allows the client to be authenticated within the Schannel architecture.

Abstract: A recovery solution can employ virtualization software to create a virtualized Active Directory forest from a source Active Directory forest. A recovery agent can be installed on the domain controllers prior to creating copies of the domain controllers in the virtualized forest. Additionally, the recovery agent can be added to a list of trusted applications if the domain controller includes security software. The recovery solution can employ the virtualization software to store a command file at a known directory path. This command file can include commands that should be executed on the virtualized domain controller to configure it properly. The recovery agent can be configured to periodically scan the known directory path to determine whether a command file has been stored in the directory. If the recovery agent locates a command file, it can extract and execute any commands in the command file.

Abstract: A recovery solution can employ virtualization software to create a virtualized Active Directory forest from a source Active Directory forest. A recovery agent can be installed on the domain controllers prior to creating copies of the domain controllers in the virtualized forest. Additionally, the recovery agent can be added to a list of trusted applications if the domain controller includes security software. The recovery solution can employ the virtualization software to store a command file at a known directory path. This command file can include commands that should be executed on the virtualized domain controller to configure it properly. The recovery agent can be configured to periodically scan the known directory path to determine whether a command file has been stored in the directory. If the recovery agent locates a command file, it can extract and execute any commands in the command file.

Abstract: A secure communication channel can be established between a recovery console and a recovery agent during an Active Directory disaster recovery. This secure channel can be established without employing the Kerberos or NTLM authentication protocols. Therefore, the recovery console and recovery agent will be able to establish a secure channel even when the domain controller is in DSRM and NTLM is disabled. A secure channel can be established between the recovery console and the recovery agent based on the Microsoft Secure Channel SSP. The Schannel implementation can be modified in a manner that allows the client to be authenticated within the Schannel architecture.