Domain Controller DCdiag error – A Global Catalog Server could not be located

active-directorydomain-controllerwindows-server-2008-r2

I've set up a replica DC in a remote location. It's connected to the main site through a VPN connection. DCdiag passes on the primary DC, but I get the following error on the replica DC:

Running enterprise tests on : mydomain.co.uk

      Starting test: LocatorCheck

         Warning: DcGetDcName(GC_SERVER_REQUIRED) call failed, error 1355

         A Global Catalog Server could not be located - All GC's are down.

         Warning: DcGetDcName(PDC_REQUIRED) call failed, error 1355

         A Primary Domain Controller could not be located.

         The server holding the PDC role is down.

         ......................... mydomain.co.uk failed test LocatorCheck

Is it giving this error just because it is not the global catalogue server, or is there some connectivity issue where it does not think there is one at all, as the error seems to imply? If so, it seems odd, as all other tests were passed.

What do I do about this?

Best Answer

Check the DNS settings on your new domain controller, in 2003 and later, you should always point to 127.0.0.1, and then secondary to another domain controller or any other DNS server with that internal DNS zone available. You should then add a "forwarder" to the DNS service itself under the DNS MMC snap-in.