I installed NT4 SBS and it went fine until it came to the network card. NT4 was able to detect the network card, but at the crucial step when i wanted it to join the network as a BDC, it said it could not find the domain controlled. I was able to complete the installation by cancelling the network part. Afterwords when the computer restarted i was able to join broswe the network! There was an error message though. Event viewer, said my browswer lost an election blah blah blah! I copied the NT4 server (Not SBS) from the pdc onto my computer and ran setup again. But again at the crucial step of trying to join my BDC to the network, it kept saying the domain controller could not be located. i kept trying different IRQ's values, changing the ISA, PCI, PNP BIOS selections, but no dice. Sometimes the light on the back of the network card would flash, but more often than not, it didn't light up. I am so frustrated, i have been trying to make it work for four days, and it stubbonly refuses. The network card is a Novell NE2000 compaitible. i even got new drivers from driverguide.com, but still no good, and yet at one time i was able to broswe the network, and now nothing. Unlike NT4 SBS, with NT4 server, i cannot cancel the network setup. i am pretty sure, i can set it up a PDC, because the network card works, but i already have a PDC on the network, and i do not want to change the computer that is the PDC. The question is, can i set up the new server as a pdc and then demote it? i would like to understand the correct procedure for doing this. Would you advise, disconneting the current PDC from the network, setup the new one, and then demoting it. The problem i see in doing this, is that if i attempt to demote it, supposing this is possible, the computer will then look for a pdc to connect to which will have been disconnected, and if i attempt to connect them at the same time, big trouble. Any advice would be welcome Thanks a lot

you might want to double check this but I don't believe SBS can be a bdc but only a pdc. It is my understanding its designed as a standalone solution. There is a product called Upromote that will work with moving a pdc/bdc to another domain. Golly gee wilerkers everyone. Learn to Internet Search

Right very quickly... I am sorry you did not read my message fully. i did install SBS server, but... SBS 4.5 server setup is in two parts. Part one is NT4 server, and it asks you all the ususal questions PDC, BDC or member server. Once this has been setup, you then run setup a second time and it installs all of theose lovely products and services. Because i couldn't find my original NT4 server disk, i decided to use part one setup of SBS NT4.5, which all went OK, because i was able to cancel the setup of the network and continue it after the o/s was complete. But after copying the original NT4 server files from over the network and running setup from the hard disk, i then found at the crucial moment that it couldn't join the network and i couldn't cancel the setup. The problem i resolved myself, with a little help from Microsoft. I searched their webiste and they gave me the info i needed Solution Shutdown the current PDC Run setup on new computer and set it up as a PDC, with everything the same as the PDC. After installing & service packs, shut it down. Switch on original pdc and logon as domain admin switch on the pdc to demoted. When you are happy it can be accessed over the network, run server manager on the PDC. You will find the BDC comes up aa s workstation, remove it from the domain, and then add it to the domain as a BDC. It will then all work fine.

But now there is a new problem. Sniffle-sniffle. Unfortunately i did not read their information properly either. I turned on the pdc after setting up the other pdc. i was under the impression i could just run server manager and just demote the pdc i was on to a BDC. But not so. Rather stupidly i thought i would downgrade the original PDC to BDC and then repromote it. I thinks is gort itself all screwed. The two computers can see each other and i can browse each others files, i can still log on and everything, but.... big problem, i can not broswe the windows XP workstation that is supposed to be on the newtork, and i cannot log onto the neetwork. The error i seem to get is that the XP workstation is not trusted. i am supposed to re-establish the trust relationship. But the NT4 server and Microsofts website do not tell me how. i tried to log on, and it said the PDC was not available. Can anyone help?