Delete a Group
Applies To: Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012
Membership in Account Operators , Domain Admins , or Enterprise Admins , or equivalent, is the minimum required to complete this procedure. Review details about using the appropriate accounts and group memberships at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=83477.
Deleting a group account
Using the Windows interface
Using a command line
To delete a group account using the Windows interface
To open Active Directory Users and Computers, click Start , click Control Panel , double-click Administrative Tools , and then double-click Active Directory Users and Computers .
To open Active Directory Users and Computers in Windows Server® 2012, click Start , type dsa.msc .
In the console tree, click the folder that contains the group that you want to delete.
Where?
- Active Directory Users and Computers\ domain node \ folder that contains the group
In the details pane, right-click the group, and then click Delete .
Additional considerations
To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure.
Deleting a group is a permanent operation.
You can also perform the task in this procedure by using the Active Directory module for Windows PowerShell. To open the Active Directory module, click Start , click Administrative Tools , and then click Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell .
To open the Active Directory module in Windows Server 2012, open Server Manager , click Tools and then click Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell .
For more information, see Delete a Group (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=138381). For more information about Windows PowerShell, see Windows PowerShell (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=102372).
Additional references
To delete a group account using a command line
To open a command prompt, click Start , click Run , type cmd , and then click OK .
To open a command prompt in Windows Server 2012, click Start , type cmd , and then click OK .
Type the following command, and then press ENTER:
dsrm <GroupDN>
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
<GroupDN> |
Specifies the distinguished name of the group object to be deleted. |
To view the complete syntax for this command, and for information about entering user account information, at a command prompt, type the following command, and then press ENTER:
dsrm /?
Additional considerations
To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or Enterprise Admins group in AD DS, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure.
Deleting a group is a permanent operation.
You can also perform the task in this procedure by using the Active Directory module for Windows PowerShell. To open the Active Directory module, click Start , click Administrative Tools , and then click Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell .
To open the Active Directory module in Windows Server 2012, open Server Manager , click Tools and then click Active Directory Module for Windows PowerShell .
For more information, see Delete a Group (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=138381). For more information about Windows PowerShell, see Windows PowerShell (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=102372).