FSMO Roles & Sites

Active Directory uses a multi-master replication model — every DC can process writes. But some operations must be handled by a single authority to prevent conflicts. These are the five Flexible Single Master Operations (FSMO) roles.

Forest-wide roles (one per forest):

• •Schema Master — controls schema changes
• •Domain Naming Master — controls adding/removing domains

Domain-wide roles (one per domain):

• •PDC Emulator — time sync, password changes, GPO coordination
• •RID Master — allocates unique ID pools to DCs
• •Infrastructure Master — resolves cross-domain references

Click "Continue" to start locating them.