Move a user account

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To move a user account

  • Using the Windows interface

  • Using a command line

Using the Windows interface

  1. Open Active Directory Users and Computers.

  2. In the console tree, click Users.

    Where?

    • Active Directory Users and Computers/domain node/Users

    Or, click the folder that contains the user account.

  3. In the details pane, right-click the user you want to move, and then click Move.

  4. In the Move dialog box, click the folder to which you want to move the user account.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • 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.

  • You cannot use Active Directory Users and Computers to move user accounts between domains. To move a user account between domains, use Movetree, one of the Active Directory support tools. For more information, see Related Topics.

Using a command line

  1. Open Command Prompt.

  2. Type:

    dsmoveUserDN [-newparent ParentDN]

Value Description

UserDN

Specifies the distinguished name of the user object to be moved.

ParentDN

Specifies the new location to which you want to move the user object. The new location is specified as the distinguished name of the new parent node.

Notes

  • To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.

  • To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command prompt.

  • To view the complete syntax for this command, and for information on entering more user account information, at a command prompt, type:

    dsmove /?

Information about functional differences

  • Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.

See Also

Concepts

Working with MMC console files
Find a user account
Active Directory support tools