The Schema is a representation of the contents that can be stored within Active Directory. It is made up of classes, attributes and class properties. It defines the different kinds of objects and the information associated with each type of object that can be stored in Active Directory.

The Schema is made up of two different components: class-schema objects and attribute-schema objects. The object classes define the specific types of objects that can be created. The attribute class defines the different information for each object type. Each attribute is only defined once within the Schema but can be associated with multiple object classes.

The following steps outline how to add the Active Directory Schema snap-in and view the attributes associated with the User class object.

1. Within Windows Explorer, locate the schmmgmt.dll and regsvr32.exe (both are located in the Windows\system32 directory).

2. Drag the schmmgmt.dll onto the regsvr32.exe. A Window should appear telling you that the operation was successful. Click OK.
3. Click Start and click Run. Type mmc and press Enter.
4. Within the management console click file and click Add/Remove Snap-in. Click Add and scroll the list of snap-ins.
5. Select the Active Directory Schema. Click Add and click Close. Click OK.
6. In the left pane, expand the Active Directory Schema and click the Classes container. Scroll through the list available classes in the right pane. Notice the default object classes available.
7. Double click the User class object. This brings up the User Properties window.
8. Click on the Attributes tab to view which attributes are associated with the user class.
9. Click Cancel and close the Active Directory Schema snap-in.

[tags]diana huggins,active directory,schema,schmmgmt.dll,regsvr32.exe[/tags]