LDAP Naming Services Compared to Other Naming Services
The following table shows a comparison between the DNS, NIS, NIS+, and
LDAP naming services.
|
DNS |
NIS |
NIS+ |
LDAP |
|---|
Namespace |
Hierarchical |
Flat |
Hierarchical |
Hierarchical |
Data Storage |
Files/resource records |
2 column maps |
Multi-columned tables |
Directories (varied) Indexed database |
Servers |
Master/slave |
Master/slave |
Root master/ non-root master;
primary/ secondary; cache/stub |
Master/replica Multi master replica |
Security |
None |
None (root or nothing) |
Secure RPC (AUTH_DH) Authentication |
SSL, varied |
Transport |
TCP/IP |
RPC |
RPC |
TCP/IP |
Scale |
Global |
LAN |
LAN |
Global |
Advantages of LDAP Naming Services
LDAP enables you to consolidate information by replacing application-specific databases, which reduces the number of distinct databases to be managed.
LDAP allows data to be shared by different naming services.
LDAP provides a central repository for data.
LDAP allows for more frequent data synchronization between masters and replicas.
LDAP is multi-platform and multi-vendor compatible.
Restrictions of LDAP Naming Services
Following are some restrictions associated with LDAP naming services:
Clients prior to Solaris 8 are not supported.
An LDAP server cannot be its own client.
Setting up and managing an LDAP naming services is more complex and requires careful planning.
A NIS client and a Native LDAP client cannot co-exist on the same client machine.
Note - A directory server (an LDAP server) cannot be its own client. That
is, you cannot configure the machine that is running the directory server
software to become an LDAP naming services client.
