Automate ADFS Farm Installation and Configuration

27th of September, 2016 / / No Comments

Originally posted on Nivlesh’s blog @ nivleshc.wordpress.com

Introduction

In this multi-part blog, I will be showing how to automatically install and configure a new ADFS Farm. We will accomplish this using Azure Resource Manager templates, Desired State Configuration scripts and Custom Script Extensions.

Overview

We will use Azure Resource Manager to create a virtual machine that will become our first ADFS Server. We will then use a desired state configuration script to join the virtual machine to our Active Directory domain and to install the ADFS role.… [Keep reading] “Automate ADFS Farm Installation and Configuration”

Create a Replica Domain Controller using Desired State Configuration

20th of September, 2016 / / No Comments

Originally posted on Nivlesh’s blog @ nivleshc.wordpress.com
Welcome back. In this blog we will continue with our new Active Directory Domain and use Desired State Configuration (DSC) to add a replica domain controller to it, for redundancy.
If you have not read the first part of this blog series, I would recommend doing that before continuing (even if you need a refresher). The first blog can be found at Create a new Active Directory Forest using Desired State Configuration
Whenever you create an Active Directory Domain, you should have, at a minimum, two domain controllers.… [Keep reading] “Create a Replica Domain Controller using Desired State Configuration”

Create a new Active Directory Forest using Desired State Configuration

8th of September, 2016 / / 9 Comments

Originally posted on Nivlesh’s blog @ nivleshc.wordpress.com

Desired State Configuration (DSC) is a declarative language in which you state “what” you want done instead of going into the nitty gritty level to describe exactly how to get it done. Jeffrey Snover (the inventor of PowerShell) quotes Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation to describe DSC – it tells the servers to “Make it so”.

In this blog, I will show you how to use DSC to create a brand new Active Directory Forest.… [Keep reading] “Create a new Active Directory Forest using Desired State Configuration”

Easy Debugging of PowerShell DSC for Azure Virtual Machines

11th of January, 2016 / / 6 Comments

Many of the Kloud team have recently been buried deep in the world of Azure Resource Manager (ARM) as it becomes the preferred way to create and manage Azure resources.

One extension point offered via ARM for Virtual Machine automation is the use of PowerShell Desired State Configuration (DSC) to control the Windows OS (and now Linux too!) and application software setup on a VM post creation.

I hadn’t touched PowerShell DSC much prior to the last year and have found that it’s not that hard to pick up, especially if you come from a programming, scripting or Linux sysadmin background.… [Keep reading] “Easy Debugging of PowerShell DSC for Azure Virtual Machines”