Active Directory - what ports to open
Active Directory communication takes place using several ports.
The following is the list of services and their ports used for Active Directory communication:
| Protocol and Port | AD and AD DS Usage | Type of traffic |
|---|---|---|
| TCP 25 | Replication | SMTP |
| TCP and UDP 53 | User and Computer Authentication, Name Resolution, Trusts | DNS |
| TCP and UDP 88 | User and Computer Authentication, Forest Level Trusts | Kerberos |
| UDP 123 | Windows Time, Trusts | Windows Time |
| TCP 135 | Replication | RPC, EPM |
| UDP 137 | User and Computer Authentication, | NetLogon, NetBIOS Name Resolution |
| UDP 138 | DFS, Group Policy | DFSN, NetLogon, NetBIOS Datagram Service |
| TCP 139 | ser and Computer Authentication, Replication | DFSN, NetBIOS Session Service, NetLogon |
|
TCP and UDP 389 |
LDAP Server - Directory, Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts |
LDAP |
| TCP and UDP 445 | SMB - Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts | SMB,CIFS,SMB2, DFSN, LSARPC, NbtSS, NetLogonR, SamR, SrvSvc |
| TCP and UDP 464 | Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Trusts | Kerberos change/set password |
| TCP 500 | IPsec ISAKMP | |
|
TCP 636 |
LDAP SSL - Directory, Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts |
LDAP SSL |
|
TCP 3268 |
Global Catalog - Directory, Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts |
LDAP GC |
|
TCP 3269 |
Global Catalog - Directory, Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts |
LDAP GC SSL |
|
UDP 67 and UDP 2535 |
DHCP is not a core AD DS service but it is often present in many AD DS deployments. | DHCP, MADCAP |
| UDP 4500 | NAT-T | |
|
TCP 5722 |
File Replication |
RPC, DFSR (SYSVOL) |
| TCP 9389 | Active Directory Web Services (ADWS), Active Directory Management Gateway Service | SOAP |
| TCP 1024 - 5000 TCP 49152 - 65535 |
RPC randomly allocated high TCP ports | |
|
UDP Dynamic |
Group Policy |
DCOM, RPC, EPM |
| TCP Dynamic | Replication, User and Computer Authentication, Group Policy, Trusts | RPC, DCOM, EPM, DRSUAPI, NetLogonR, SamR, FRS |
These ports are required by both client computers and Domain Controllers.
Example, client computer tries to find a domain controller it sends a DNS Query over Port 53 to find the name of the domain controller in the domain.




