Unwrapping security on a 2003 server

[Guest Dave Sinclair]

Hi Everybody/Anybody

 

I have inherited a small network (2 x 2K servers & 2 x 2003 servers). DC1 is

a 2K machine and DC2 is a 2003 machine. My Microsoft experience stopped in

the year 2000 so I was good up to NT 3.51. The previous IT did not leave any

information on how anything is/was setup. DC2 has been locked down/hardened

(what ever terminology you are happy with) or hacked (the previous IT was a

Linux geek).

Our main administrator (could have been renamed?) account cannot access DC2

(only DC2, I have full acces to any other machine on the network) and I have

tried all active directory accounts but nothing lets me into DC2. For

example, there is no service pack installed on DC2 but after I install the

network cards are disabled and they cannot be accessed until the service

pack

is removed. If I try and push Backup Exec remote agents - it asks for an

account with administrator rights and that is us stuck.

 

I wonder is somebody could point me in the right direction - on the later

versions of server is this a domain controller policy issue (although I have

had a look at all the configured values and cannot see anything that would

lock me out) or is it local to DC2. Another factor that may be in the

equation is that I believe that DC2 was built using small business server

version of Windows 2003 (although it states standard but may have been

hacked) and I believe SBS has unique security features.

 

Hopefully somebody will have a laugh at my predicament and point me to areas

that I should be looking at?