Active Directory
Also written as AD DS, Active Directory Domain Services, Group Policy, GPO, Domain Controller
Microsoft's directory for company networks: it holds every user, computer and group, checks logins, and applies settings to machines through Group Policy (GPOs). Domain controllers are the servers that run it. Most companies now link it to Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) in the cloud.
Think of it like
The office's master staff register and key cabinet: who works here, which doors they can open, and the rules for each desk.
Junior or senior?
Near-universal wherever Windows is used.
Junior sounds like
Creates users and resets passwords.
Senior sounds like
Has designed the group and policy structure, run an AD migration, or set up syncing with Entra ID.
Ask them
“Beyond creating users, what have you designed or changed in Active Directory, such as Group Policy, domain structure, or syncing with Entra ID?”
Reading Active Directory on a resume
- Table-stakes
- Most people in this field list Active Directory, so its presence tells you little, and opening a screen with it can make the call sound junior. Ask what they built with it instead.
- Around since 2000
- Nobody can have more years of Active Directory than it has existed. A job description asking for more was probably copied without checking — worth raising with the hiring manager.
Sourcing for Active Directory
Every way it's written
("Active Directory" OR "AD DS" OR "Active Directory Domain Services" OR "Group Policy")Paste into LinkedIn Recruiter, Naukri or your ATS. Combine with a job title and location.
Wider net, with accepted substitutes
("Active Directory" OR "AD DS" OR "Active Directory Domain Services" OR "Group Policy" OR "GPO" OR "Domain Controller")Includes skills a hiring manager would usually accept instead. Use it when the exact search runs dry.
Job titles to search alongside it
Network Engineer · Network Administrator · System Administrator · IT Infrastructure Engineer · Network Security Engineer · NOC Engineer · Windows Administrator · Linux Administrator
Where this talent works in India — Networking & IT Infrastructure
Target companies that build networking gear or run large networks and data centres themselves: equipment makers, telecom operators, data-centre operators and infrastructure-services firms. Help-desk-heavy outsourcing contracts use the same titles with far less design work, so ask who designed the network, not just who kept it running.
For example: Cisco, Juniper Networks (HPE), HPE Aruba Networking, Arista Networks, Extreme Networks, F5, Infoblox, Nokia.