CREST Practitioner Security Analyst (CPSA) Practice

What role does a Global Catalog Server play in Active Directory?

1. It holds complete information of all user accounts

2. It holds a subset of information for the entire Active Directory forest

3. It manages security group policies

4. It serves as the primary domain controller

The correct answer is: It holds a subset of information for the entire Active Directory forest

The Global Catalog Server plays a crucial role in an Active Directory environment by holding a subset of information for the entire Active Directory forest. This subset includes a limited set of attributes for each object, which allows for efficient directory searches across the entire forest. The purpose of the Global Catalog is to facilitate the quick location of directory information by clients in any domain within the forest without needing to query each domain controller individually. Since the Global Catalog contains essential attributes, it supports functions like user logins, resource location, and group membership verification across different domains. This makes it especially beneficial in multi-domain environments where seamless interaction between domains is necessary. In contrast, the other options do not accurately describe the role of the Global Catalog. It does not hold complete information on all user accounts—rather, it stores essential attributes to streamline searches. Additionally, while security group policies are managed through other components of Active Directory, the Global Catalog itself does not manage these policies. Lastly, the Global Catalog does not function as the primary domain controller; it is a specialized server that complements the primary domain controllers by enhancing directory services across the entire forest.