Domain membership is a subject of vital concern. Samba must be able to participate as a member server in a Microsoft domain security context, and Samba must be capable of providing domain machine member trust accounts; otherwise it would not be able to offer a viable option for many users.

This chapter covers background information pertaining to domain membership, the Samba configuration for it, and MS Windows client procedures for joining a domain. Why is this necessary? Because both are areas in which there exists within the current MS Windows networking world, and particularly in the UNIX/Linux networking and administration world, a considerable level of misinformation, incorrect understanding, and lack of knowledge. Hopefully this chapter will fill the voids.