[Samba] Renaming a computer on a Samba domain

[Gary Dale]

Jason Somers wrote:
> We shift computers around a lot, and therefore need to rename several 
> whenever we get new batches of systems in.
>
> Tried simply renaming a system while on the domain, but got an "access 
> denied" error. I WAS able to disjoin the domain, remove the LDAP entry 
> for the computer, log in as a local administrator, rename the 
> computer, and rejoin the domain a different computer name.
>
> However, this is a HUGE pain. The number of reboots alone is a genuine 
> time-killer. Doing it one several systems can waste an entire day. 
> Does anyone have any suggestions?
>
> Thanks!
> Jason
>
Can you be more specific about what you are doing and why?

I surmise that you are renaming existing Windows boxes when you get in 
new computers, but are the Windows boxes servers or desktops? And why do 
you need to rename in the first place? What happens to the old boxes?

The reason I ask is that there are possibly better solutions than 
renaming computers. This is especially true if you are doing this 
frequently.