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I'm configuring two server as IIS web servers on Windows Server 2008 in load balancing mode. I want to enable DFS replication for synchronizing web content files and IIS configuration data (via IIS 7 shared configuration.)

The servers are not in a Windows domain. After I addded the DFS role, I'm getting the following error message in the event log:

The DFS Replication service failed to contact domain controller to access configuration information. Replication is stopped. The service will try again during the next configuration polling cycle, which will occur in 60 minutes. This event can be caused by TCP/IP connectivity, firewall, Active Directory Domain Services, or DNS issues.

Additional Information: Error: 1355 (The specified domain either does not exist or could not be contacted.)

I know there are advantages having pure web servers in a domain, but I want to know if this is a conditio-sine-qua-non or is there a way to configure DFRS between Windows Server 2008 servers without a Windows domain?

Community
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splattne
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2 Answers2

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Can I use DFS Replication in a workgroup?

No. DFS Replication relies on Active Directory® Domain Services for configuration. It will only work in a domain.

link here

phuzion
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Why not set up a cluster for this purpose? DFS Replication is not the way to go for this.

Tatas
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  • Why not? I read about DFS-R in a book about IIS 7 and it seems to be a valid method for synchronizing IIS meta data and web files. Which type of cluster do you mean? – splattne Jul 29 '09 at 20:06
  • I think you're going to have to be a member of a domain in order to use DFS, as the DFS root info is stored there. Also, I was referring to VCS (veritas cluster service) as it has the ability to do active/active clustering. I do not believe MSCS (microsoft clustering) can do active/active. You may also want to take a look at the schedule for DFS-R, I know back in the 2003 days is was around 1 hour, which was unacceptable to us. If that works for you, then you may want to use it. – Tatas Jul 30 '09 at 22:47
  • I also did not like the fact that the macs in our environment were not compatible with DFS shares. – Tatas Jul 30 '09 at 22:49