Azure AD Connect Sync Staging Mode

[@svause]

Absolutely invaluable discussion and demonstration - thank you!! This is the only reference I've been able to find about how to setup a staging server, and to successfully perform the cut-over between two AADC servers.

[@Ciraltos]

Glad it helped!

[@vikasbiliye5023]

You are god sent. So lucky to have found this video.

[@jeffbose7218]

Short but clear information delivered, //Thanks

[@davidtrevor8967]

nice, the compare script is something I have been looking for I will try it out soon

[@RobTiff0818]

So much frustration with Microsoft's method of documenting this process. Thank you very much for taking the time to make this video. It was very useful for us.

[@DanielDainty]

Thanks for the video! Do you have any tips on examining the Staging Mode state to examine what it is about to do (if you take off staging mode)?

[@krayzenvy]

Awesome video! I do have a question, on my current production server I don't have a configure button but instead a custom or express as if need to reinstall but everything is still syncing. Hence why I'm building a new one. Once migrated can I just make the new server production and disabled the sync service on older server instead of setting it in staged. Don't plan on using it any longer since it's also on older OS. Thank you in advance.

[@CTHellcat]

Hi, I'm trying to migrate to a new AADConnect server with staging mode in an ADFS environment where we have multiple federated email domains in our single Azure tenant. When running the setup wizard on the staging server, I import the configuration and it pre-selects the "ADFS" option. My problem is that at one point in the initial wizard it asks me to choose a federated domain and it seems to indicate that it's going to make a real-time modification to the existing federation trust for that domain. This is not what I want to happen on a staging server. I want the staging server to be completely hands off with no impact to the production environment until the point that I flip staging mode on the old/new servers. Can you provide any guidance on this?

[@chauhan785]

Thanks Sir, I did the same steps for my new staging server. One thing I noticed, on both the servers if I run get-adsyncconnector ! Fl name,identifier, I am getting the same AD domain connector GUID . Is this correct? Or not?

[@monkeymagic4600]

Thanks for the informative video. Our secondary AAD Connect server has been in staging mode for a year. If I set staging mode on the primary and then configure the secondary server to be active, will the new active server export a year’s worth of changes to Azure AD?

[@Ciraltos]

Staging mode keeps the agent's database updated; all the changes are processed the same as the primary one. It just skips the last step of syncing the changes to Entra ID. Once primary, only new changes should be replicated.

[@DelonBH]

Is it possible to do that (put production to stage and Atage to Production, by simulations a fail over) by powershell script? I means to make it more automatic to swap configuration. Another Question: If I dont have a SQL Cluster, but I need a separeted SQL for data, when I configure the staging server, it will point to the same SQL database? Thank you for this video.

[@gdr1174]

Excellent explanation 👌

[@GreenKokerfeatMaster]

Excellent, thanks for the video…helped a lot 👌

[@sathyar7078]

Could you please created videos on Azure Data Lake , Data Factory , Synapse Analytics ,etc ? Into Azure Data Services

[@svause]

Thanks!

[@Ciraltos]

Thank you!

[@jpthsd]

Thank you! The Export configuration is only available maybe with 1.5x and later version. I am currently on 1.2.x and the export configuration is not available at all. What I did exactly like you but I would have to export the synchronization inbound & outbound rules from production into the ps1 files and replace the connector info of the production's exported rule ps1 file with the connector info of the pilot/staging server! and then do the documenter to compare!!!

[@patrickmukanzi6292]

Awesome. Short video but full of details. Great.

[@ianhokage]

Hi. I have an existing staging server in our organization that has been outdated. There are additional settings in the primary adconnect server that have not been replicated to the staging server. How do i import these settings to the staging server without reinstalling adconnect?

[@ianhokage]

Great tutorial. Very informative and easy to understand.

[@suhasnaikwadi5094]

My organisation ad azure connect install in os version is windows server 2012 i need to change windows server 2019 so it is possible i will export ad azure connect file through the windows server 2012 and import file windows server 2019 is it working or not? please let me know this activity we do this?

[@Chris-tn7rc]

Great as always 👍👍

[@Ciraltos]

Thank you!

[@pdeswardt]

Will the old/new AAD servers automatically be removed/added in Azure, or is that a manual step that needs to be completed ( assuming a cutover to a new AAD Connect server )

[@makeitcloudy]

straight to the point as usual. thank you!

[@deepaks010]

Great tutorial - i need to migrate to new AD connect and i do not have 2 server to test this, is it possible to install 2 instance of ad connect on same server. Run one as staging and switch once all setting are verified ? Thanks

[@Ciraltos]

I have never heard of this being done and I would advise against it. If you are migrating off of 2012R2, the new version of ad connect sync is not supported on 2012R2, you need a second server with 2016 or newer.

[@tristan-zx1oh]

Great video. I don't see any document or step by step on environment with SQL server. How do i setup a staging server to use SQL server db as well?

[@Ciraltos]

I did a quick search and all I found was a list of requirements. Using a custom install will give the option to specify a SQL server. docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/active-directory/hybrid/how-to-connect-install-prerequisites#sql-server-used-by-azure-ad-connect

[@sandhyanepali5651]

Could you please make a video on Stagging mode verification through Command I enter lots of command to export xml file but didnt get sucess I am very new to this things so i was told to verify stagging mode by probing the command

[@Toaster-v1z]

Very informative. Thanks for the quality video.

[@mtocao]

So if I have an active ADConnect server using a SQL db, then I will need another db created for the staging mode server to use? I tried pointing the staging mode server to the same db and gave me an error "The ADSync database already contains data and cannot be overwritten"

[@Ciraltos]

The staging instance of AD Connect should match the configuration of the active version. The logic is, if the staging mode becomes active, it will need the same resources. If, however, you decided that a SQL backend wasn't needed, you could use the DB that comes with the application and migrate off SQL. The staging server needs it's own copy of the DB, it can't attach to the existing SQL database. I suspect you could stand up a new instance on a cluster and use that.

[@mtocao]

@@Ciraltos that’s what i did. Thanks for confirming. Do you recommend using HA/AOA if using SQL server?

[@jpthsd]

@@mtocao AlwaysON Database 2014 SQL does have that feature!

[@MrNameless0shelter]

Also, what would happen if both Azure AD sync servers are Staging accidentally? Thanks

[@SuperNaturaali]

Nothing, both servers are not syncing to Azure cause they are in staging mode. U have to choose one of them to be " main " server and use this videos steps to do it.

[@krzysztofstefanowski1989]

Great tutorial - I have one question, is it possible to somehow automate the update of settings between the production server and the one in stage mode?

[@MySasasasasasasasas]

Cappo!

[@MrNameless0shelter]

With AD Connect Configuration Documenter, after I run report, I noticed that it used Partition: DC=larry,DC=local Setting Configuration Last domain controller used Boss2.larry.localBoss3.larry.local We have two Domain controllers. Is this OK?