SX270 slow logging into network

Long logons: most likely a result of incorrectly configured DNS. XP will attempt to get its bearings through DNS first... if that doesn't work, it will finally resort to a NetBIOS broadcast to see networked computers, including the domain controller. Win2K computers check for a WINS server before a DNS server, so they don't often have this problem. Configure DNS on the server with appropriate forwarders to your ISP's DNS servers, and point your XP client's DNS settings to the server's IP address. If all network clients are Win2K or WinXP machines, I would just get rid of any WINS assignements on the DHCP server and rely soley on DNS.

Check your user login profiles and make sure they do not have a logon path specified. This will switch the roaming profile. Depending on what that specific user has stored in c:/documents and settings/[user_profile] on their local machine, it could take a tremendous amount of time.

Go to run and type "mmc" in the console go to "Add/Remove snap in" then click "Add" in the bottom lefthand corner and add a "Group Policy". Hit finish and ok and you'll be returned to the origional screen with sub menu "Local computer policy" expand the menu and go into "computer Configuration" and then into Administritave Templates" then "System" and "Logon" make sure the last entry is set to enabled and then exit saving chages. The system will logon much quicker.

Set your XP system’s DNS to point at a DC, there needs to be a DNS server running where you say there is and preferably you should setup n+1 number of DNS servers (i.e. the number you need to handle the load plus a backup). Additionally not only your W2K/XP computers need to point at the DNS servers, but also the DC need to point at the DNS servers. You can run DNS on a DC and it’s quite common to do so.

On a Win2k domain slow logon and DNS error problems are almost always a combination of:

1. Autosensing failure between switch and workstation NIC; you can use this matrix for some hints as to how to force the workstation nic settings:

Workstation Switch Result

Forced Half Forced Half Works
Forced Full Forced Full Works
Auto Auto Maybe
Forced Full Auto NO
Auto Forced Full NO
Forced Half Forced Full NO
Forced Full Forced Half NO


2. DNS resolution issues.

Slow logons from XP to a win2000 domain usually indicate a DNS misconfiguration issue. While the following is not a fix-all for all AD-domain problems, it is an absolute requirement that DNS is set up correctly before it will work properly. If your DNS is not set up like this, then you will experience slow logon and other DNS problems. XP differs from previous versions of windows in that it uses DNS as it's primary name resolution method for finding domain controllers:
How Domain Controllers Are Located in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;314861

If DNS is misconfigured, XP will spend a lot of time waiting for it to timeout before it tries using legacy NT4 sytle NetBIOS. (Which may or may not work.)

1. Ensure that the XP clients are all configured to point to the local DNS server which hosts the AD domain. That will probably be the Win2k server itself. They should NOT be pointing to an ISP's DNS server. An 'ipconfig /all' on the XP box should reveal ONLY the domain's DNS server. You should use the DHCP server to push out the local DNS server address.

2. Ensure DNS server on win2k is configured to permit dynamic updates. Ensure the win2k server points to itself as a DNS server using 127.0.0.1 as the DNS address.

3. For external (internet) name resolution, specify your ISP's DNS server not on the clients, but in the forwarders tab of the local Win2k DNS server. On the DNS server, if you cannot access the 'Forwarders' and 'Root Hints' tabs because they are greyed out, that is because there is a root zone (".") present on the DNS server. You MUST delete this root zone to permit the server to forward unresolved queries to yout ISP or the root servers. Accept any nags etc, and let it delete any corresponding reverse lookup zones if it asks.

The following articles may assist you in setting up DNS correctly:
Setting Up the Domain Name System for Active Directory
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;237675

HOW TO: Configure DNS for Internet Access in Windows 2000
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;300202

3. Asynchronous processing of logon commands.

You may experience extremely long delays (up to 5 minutes) when logging into domains using Windows XP Pro. This is caused by the asyncronous loading of networking during the boot up process. This speeds up the login process in a stand-alone workstation by allowing the user to log in with cached logon credentials before the network is fully ready.

To disable this "feature" and restore your domain logons to their normal speed, open the MMC and add the group policy snap-in. Under Computer Configuration-->Administrative Templates-->System-->Logon, change "Always wait for the network at computer startup and logon" to ENABLED.

This can be fed to clients via a group policy from a Windows 2000 server by upgrading the standard policy template with the XP policy template. Since this is an XP only command, non-XP systems will ignore it in a domain distributed group policy.