Are you stuck with DNS Event ID 4013? We can help you.

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Let’s take a look at how our Support Team resolve this error.

How to resolve DNS Event ID 4013?

Usually, the following DNS Event ID 4013 is log in the DNS event log of domain controllers that are hosting the DNS server role after Windows starts:

Event Type: Warning
Event Source: DNS
Event Category: None
Event ID: 4013
Date: Date
Time: Time
User: N/A
Computer: ComputerName
Description:
The DNS server was unable to open the Active Directory. This DNS server is configured to use directory service information and can not operate without access to the directory. The DNS server will wait for the directory to start. If the DNS server is started but the appropriate event has not been logged, then the DNS server is still waiting for the directory to start.

For more information, see Help and Support Center at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.
Data:
0000: <%status code%>

Mostly, issue occurs due to below conditions:

• slow Windows startup
• the logging of DNS event 4013 on DNS servers that are configure to host AD-integrat zones, which implicitly reside on computers acting as domain controllers.

Some Microsoft and external content have recommend setting the registry value Repl Perform Initial Synchronizations to 0 to bypass initial synchronization requirements in Active Directory.

The specific registry subkey and the values for that setting are as follows:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\NTDS\Parameters
Value name: Repl Perform Initial Synchronizations
Value type: REG_DWORD
Value data: 0

This configuration change isn’t recommend for use in production environments, or in any environment on an ongoing basis.

The use of Repl Perform Initial Synchronizations should use only in critical situations to resolve temporary and specific problems.

How to resolve it?

Today, let us see the steps followed by our Support Techs to resolve it.

The default setting should restore after such problems are resolve.

Other feasible options include:

• Firstly, remove references to stale domain controllers.
• Then, make offline or non-functioning domain controllers operational.
• Domain controllers hosting AD-integrate DNS zones shouldn’t point to a single domain controller and especially only to themselves as prefer DNS for name resolution.
• DNS name registration and name resolution for domain controllers is a relatively lightweight operation that’s highly cache by DNS clients and servers.
• Configuring domain controllers to point to a single DNS server’s IP address, including the 127.0.0.1 loopback address, represents a single point of failure.

This setting is tolerable in a forest with only one domain controller, but not in forests with multiple domain controllers.

Hub-site domain controllers should point to DNS servers in the same site as them for prefer and alternate DNS server and then finally to itself as another alternate DNS server.

Branch site domain controllers should configure the prefer DNS server IP address to point to a hub-site DNS server, the alternate DNS server IP address to point to an in-site DNS server or one in the closest available site, and finally to itself using the 127.0.0.1 loopback address or current static IP address.

Dynamic domain controller SRV and host A and AAAA record registrations may not make it off-box if the registering domain controller in a branch site is unable to outbound replicate.

Member computers and servers should continue to point to site-optimal DNS servers as prefer DNS. And they may point to off-site DNS servers for additional fault tolerance.

Your ultimate goal is to prevent everything from causing a denial of service while balancing costs, risks, and network utilization, such as:

• • replication latency and replication failures
  • hardware failures, software failures
  • operational practices
  • short and long-term power outages
  • fire, theft, flood, and earthquakes
  • terrorist events
  • Are available at Windows startup.
  • Host, forward, or delegate the _msdcs.<forest root domain> and primary DNS suffix zones for current and potential source domain controllers.
  • Can resolve the current CNAME GUID records (for example, dded5a29-fc25-4fd8-aa98-7f472fc6f09b._msdcs.contoso.com) and host records of current and potential source domain controllers.
  • Then, make sure that destination domain controllers can resolve source domain controllers using DNS (for example, avoid fallback).
    

    Domain controllers should point to DNS servers that:

• Optimize domain controllers for name resolution fallback.The inability to configure DNS properly so that domain controllers could resolve the domain controller CNAME GUID records to host records in DNS was common.
• To ensure end-to-end replication of Active Directory partitions, Windows Server 2003 SP1 and later domain controllers were modify to perform name resolution fallback:
  • from domain controller CNAME GUID to fully qualify hostname.
  • Then, fully qualified hostname to NetBIOS computer name.

  The NTDS replication Event IDs 2087 and 2088 in the Directory Service event logs indicate that:

  • a destination domain controller couldn’t resolve the domain controller CNAME GUID record to a host record.
  • Then, name resolution fallback is occurring.

  WINS, HOST files, and LMHOST files can all configure.

• Change the startup value for the DNS server service to manual if booting into a known bad configuration.If booting a domain controller in a known bad configuration that’s discussed in this article, follow these steps:
  1. Firstly, set the DNS Server service startup value to manual.
  2. Reboot, wait for the domain controller to advertise.
  3. Finally, restart the DNS Server service.

  If the service startup value for DNS Server service is set to manual, Active Directory doesn’t wait for the DNS Server service to start.

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Conclusion

In brief, our skilled Support Engineers at Bobcares demonstrate how to resolve DNS Event ID 4013