Understanding and deploying LDAP directory services (2^nd Ed.)

Increasingly, organizations are using Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) directories as the nerve centers of their computing infrastructures. LDAP, the Internet standard for directory information access, now provides the naming, location, and security traditionally supplied by network operating systems. In this expanded second edition of the seminal LDAP reference, Understanding and Deploying LDAP Directory Services, three LDAP experts explain the protocol and how to apply it effectively in numerous network environments. The book begins with an introduction to directory services and LDAP, including coverage of LDAPv3 extensions and the Netscape Directory Server. It then moves on to explore : designing directory services, including data sources, schema, naming, topology, replication, privacy, and security, deploying directory services, including establishing user access to information, implementation pitfalls, and cost analysis, maintaining directory services, including backup, disaster recovery, and troubleshooting, creating and enabling directory-service applications, Integrating directory services.

Part 1: INTRODUCTION TO DIRECTORY SERVICES AND LDAP.. 1. Directory Services Overview and History. What a Directory Is. Directories Are Dynamic. Directories Are Flexible. Directories Can Be Secure. Directories Can Be Personalized. Directory Described. What a Directory Can Do for You. Finding Things. Managing Things. Lightweight Database Applications. Security Applications. What a Directory Is Not. Directories versus Databases. Directories versus File Systems. Directories versus Web Servers. Directories versus FTP Servers. Directories versus DNS Servers. The Complementary Directory. The History and Origins of LDAP. The Dawn of Standard Directories: Part 10: 500.. The Creation and Rise of LDAP. The Key Advantages of LDAP. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. 2. Introduction to LDAP. What Is LDAP? The LDAP Protocol. The LDAP Protocol on the Wire. The LDAP Models. The LDAP Information Model. The LDAP Naming Model. The LDAP Functional Model. The LDAP Security Model. LDIF. LDIF Representation of Directory Entries. LDIF Update Statements. LDAP Server Software. LDAP Command-Line Utilities. The ldapsearch Command-Line Utility. The ldapmodify Command-Line Utility. LDAP APIs. Overview of the LDAP C API. Other LDAP APIs. LDAP and Internationalization. LDAP Overview Checklist. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. 3. LDAPv3 Extensions. How LDAPv3 Is Extended. LDAP Controls. LDAP Extended Operations. SASL Authentication Mechanisms. The Root DSE and Extension Discovery. Selected LDAPv3 Extensions. The ManageDSAIT Control. The Persistent Search Request and Entry Change Notification Response Controls. The Server-Side Sorting Request and Response Controls. The Virtual List View Request and Response Controls. The Proxied Authorization Control. Password Expiration Controls. Bulk Import Extended Operations. The EXTERNAL SASL Mechanism. The DIGEST-MD5 SASL Mechanism. Future Directions: Where Is LDAP Headed Next? Increased Integration into Operating Systems and Middleware. Emerging Standards Work. Other LDAP-Related Standards Work. LDAP and XML. DSML. LDAP Extensions and Future Directions Checklists. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. 4. Overview of Netscape Directory Server. Basic Installation. Extracting and Starting the Setup Program. Answering Installation Questions. Completing the Installation and Loading Sample Data. A Brief Hands-on Tour of Netscape Directory Server. Searching. Manipulating Netscape Directory Server Databases. Controlling Access to Directory Data. Changing the Server Configuration Using LDAP. Product Focus and Feature Set. Origin. Product Focus. Feature Set. Extending the Netscape Server: A Simple Plug-in Example. Problem Statement. The Design of the Value Constraint Plug-In. The Source Code for the Value Constraint Plug-In. Compiling and Installing the Value Constraint Plug-In. The Resulting Server Behavior. Ideas for Improvement. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. Part 2: Designing Your Directory Service.. 5. Directory Design Road Map. The Directory Life Cycle. Design. Deployment. Maintenance. Directory Design Checklist. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. 6. Defining Your Directory Needs. Overview of the Directory Needs Definition Process. Step 1: Analyze Your Environment. Step 2: Determine and Prioritize Needs. Step 3: Choose an Overall Directory Design and Deployment Approach. Step 4: Set Goals and Milestones. Analyzing Your Environment. Organizational Structure and Geography. Computer Systems. The Network. Application Software. Determining and Prioritizing Application Needs. Data. Performance. Level of Service. Security. Prioritizing Application Needs. Determining and Prioritizing Users' Needs and Expectations. Asking Your Users. Accuracy and Completeness of Data. Privacy. Audience. The Relationship of User Needs to Application Needs. Prioritizing Your Users' Needs. Determining and Prioritizing Deployment Constraints. Resources. Openness of the Process. Skills of the Directory System Designers. Skills and Needs of System Administrators. The Political Climate. Prioritizing Your Deployment Constraints. Determining and Prioritizing Other Environmental Constraints. Hardware and Software. The Network. Criticality of Service. Security. Coexistence with Other Databases and Directories. Prioritizing Your Environmental Constraints. Choosing an Overall Directory Design and Deployment Approach. Match the Prevailing Philosophy. Take Constraints into Account. Favor Simple over Complex. Focus on the Most Important Needs. Setting Some Goals and Milestones. Goals. Milestones. Recommendations for Setting Goals and Milestones. Defining Your Directory Needs Checklist. Further Reading. Looking Ahead. 7. Data Design. Data Design Overview. Common Data-Related Problems. Creating a Data Policy Statement. Identifying Which Data Elements You Need. General Characteristics of Data Elements. Fo