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The following figure show such an asymmetric directory:
In this directory structure, the second level of the tree divides the directory into two
organizational units: people and groups. The third level contains entries with information that is
specific to the organizational unit. Each person's entry includes a name, e-mail address, and
telephone number. Each group's entry includes the names of group members.
This complexity and flexibility is a key to LDAP's usefulness. With it, you can represent any
organizational structure.
LDAP offers performance advantages over conventional databases for accessing hierarchical,
directory-like information that is read frequently and changed infrequently.
Although LDAP is often used for e-mail, address, telephone, or other organizational directories, it
is by no means limited to these types of applications. For example, you can store ColdFusion MX
Advanced Security information in an LDAP database.
The LDAP information structure
The following sections describe the LDAP information structure: the elements of an LDAP
directory and how they are structured. These sections describe the following basic LDAP
concepts:
•
Entry
•
Attribute
•
Distinguished name
•
Schema, including the object class and attribute type
The LDAP information structure
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Troubleshooting
