[Samba] "Windows cannot obtain the domain controller name foryour computer network" error on XP Pro SP2 clients for Samba 3.0.23dPDC

[stephen mulcahy]

Hi,

I've noticed that any policy I created - the default machine part seems
to be processed but the default user part does not get processed - which
I suspect is back to the 1054 event I'm seeing in the application event
logs.

I've enabled usernev debug logging to try and get to the bottom of this
- the snippet around the event failure relating to user policy
processing is as follows

USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs:
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs:
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: Starting user Group Policy
(Background) processing...
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs:
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs:
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 EnterCriticalPolicySectionEx: Entering
with timeout 600000 and flags 0x0
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 EnterCriticalPolicySectionEx: User
critical section has been claimed.  Handle = 0x93c
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 EnterCriticalPolicySectionEx: Leaving
successfully.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 GetUserGuid: Failed to get user guid with
1355.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 GetUserGuid: Failed to get user guid with
1355.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs:  Machine role is 1.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: The DC for domain DUCK is not
available. aborting
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: No WMI logging done in this
policy cycle.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: Processing failed with error
1355.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 LeaveCriticalPolicySection: Critical
section 0x93c has been released.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: User Group Policy has been
applied.
USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: Leaving with 0.

I'm unfamiliar with Windows UserEnv logging so this could all be normal but

USERENV(280.5b4) 18:45:52:468 ProcessGPOs: The DC for domain DUCK is not
available. aborting

looks suspect to me. The domain I'm using is APLPI - not DUCK. DUCK is
the PDC for the domain. Is this a normal message or does something have
the nebtios name of the PDC and domain name mixed up. Anyone have any
thoughts on this?

Microsoft discuss this in http://support.microsoft.com/kb/840669 - I'm
not sure if its the same problem and I'm not sure I want to go chasing
Microsoft support about this.

Thanks for your help,

-stephen

stephen mulcahy wrote:
> stephen mulcahy wrote:
>> In the interests of getting to the bottom of this I went and configured
>> Samba on another system as a PDC for a second domain. I then joined yet
>> another machine to this domain (of the same spec and configuration as
>> the systems I'd previous experienced problems with) and diligently
>> examined the event log for any errors ... noting that there were no
>> event id 1054 's reported this time.
> 
> Hi,
> 
> In the interests of verifying my theories I went and reinstalled one of
> our office systems from scratch with Windows XP SP2 and then ran
> Microsoft Update to bring the system entirely up to date.
> 
> I then went and joined it back to my Samba domain and restarted.
> 
> What do I see on reboot only my good friend event 1054. So it looks like
> some recent change of Microsoft's is causing this error (since I don't
> see it on less up to date systems).
> 
> *sigh* - I'm now thoroughly out of ideas but don't know what the
> implications of this are other than that it seems to prevent at least
> part of my NTConfig.POL being parsed.
> 
> I'm surprised no-one else has come across this (or am I the only crazy
> installing all of Microsoft's updates on my clients? :).
> 
> -stephen
> 

-- 
Stephen Mulcahy, Applepie Solutions Ltd, Innovation in Business Center,
   GMIT, Dublin Rd, Galway, Ireland.      mailto:smulcahy at aplpi.com
  mobile:+353.87.2930252  office:+353.91.751262  http://www.aplpi.com