AZ-802 Deploy and Manage AD DS Practice Question
Exhibit
DSA Options: IS_GC
Site: Default-First-Site-Name
...
DC=contoso,DC=com
Default-First-Site-Name\DC2 via RPC
DSA object GUID: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000
Last attempt @ 2023-10-12 10:00:00 was successful.Refer to the exhibit. You are reviewing the output of a command used to check the health of your domain controllers. Based on the first line of the output, which specific role or feature is currently enabled on this domain controller?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often mistake this for a replication partner status or a site-specific configuration, failing to recognize that 'IS_GC' is the primary indicator of the Global Catalog role status.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Global Catalog (GC)
The 'IS_GC' flag in the DSA Options section of commands like 'repadmin /showrepl' indicates that the domain controller is functioning as a Global Catalog server. This is a critical piece of information for troubleshooting logon issues and ensuring that universal group memberships can be resolved locally.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Primary Domain Controller (PDC) Emulator
Why it's wrong here
The PDC Emulator role is an Operations Master role and is not identified by the 'IS_GC' string. While a PDC Emulator can also be a Global Catalog, the exhibit specifically highlights the Global Catalog attribute rather than any of the five FSMO roles assigned to the server.
- ✓
Global Catalog (GC)
Why this is correct
The 'IS_GC' flag stands for 'Is Global Catalog'. It confirms that this domain controller holds a partial, read-only copy of all objects in the forest and can perform forest-wide searches and provide universal group membership information during the user authentication and authorization process.
- ✗
Read-Only Domain Controller (RODC)
Why it's wrong here
A Read-Only Domain Controller would be identified by different flags, such as 'IS_RODC', in the output. The 'IS_GC' flag only tells us about the Global Catalog status and does not indicate whether the domain controller is writeable or read-only in its primary database operation.
- ✗
Schema Master
Why it's wrong here
The Schema Master is a forest-wide FSMO role. While the server in the exhibit might hold this role, the 'IS_GC' output does not provide evidence of FSMO role ownership. FSMO roles are typically checked using 'netdom query fsmo' or similar PowerShell commands rather than replication status tools.
Visual reference
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
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