Administrators of Microsoft networks often refer to three different types of servers:

The chapters covering domain control ( Domain Control), backup domain control ( Backup Domain Control), and domain membership ( Domain Membership) provide pertinent information regarding Samba configuration for each of these server roles. You are strongly encouraged to become intimately familiar with these chapters because they lay the foundation for deployment of Samba domain security.

A Standalone server is autonomous in respect of the source of its account backend. Refer to Standalone Servers to gain a wider appreciation of what is meant by a server being configured as a standalone server.