Delete a computer account

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

To delete a computer account

Open Active Directory Users and Computers.
In the console tree, click Computers.

Where?
- Active Directory Users and Computers/domain node/Computers
Or, click the folder in which the computer is located.
In the details pane, right-click the computer, and then click Delete.

Notes

To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.
To open Active Directory Users and Computers, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Administrative Tools, and then double-click Active Directory Users and Computers.
Once a computer account has been deleted, all permissions and memberships associated with that computer account are permanently deleted. Because the security ID (SID) for each account is unique, a new computer account with the same name as a previously deleted computer account does not inherit the permissions and memberships of the previously deleted account. To duplicate a deleted computer account, all permissions and memberships must be manually recreated.

Value	Description
ComputerDN	Specifies the distinguished name of the computer you want to add. The distinguished name specifies the directory location.

Notes

To perform this procedure, you must be a member of the Account Operators group, Domain Admins group, or the Enterprise Admins group in Active Directory, or you must have been delegated the appropriate authority. As a security best practice, consider using Run as to perform this procedure. For more information, see Default local groups, Default groups, and Using Run as.
To open a command prompt, click Start, point to All programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command prompt.
Once a computer account has been deleted, all permissions and memberships associated with that computer account are permanently deleted. Because the security ID (SID) for each account is unique, a new computer account with the same name as a previously deleted computer account does not inherit the permissions and memberships of the previously deleted account. To duplicate a deleted computer account, all permissions and memberships must be manually recreated.
To view the complete syntax for this command, at a command prompt, type:

dsrm computer /?

Your server might function differently based on the version and edition of the operating system that is installed, your account permissions, and your menu settings. For more information, see Viewing Help on the Web.