LDAP

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LDAP

• Lightweight Directory Access Protocol
• CmpE 473 Technology Presentation
• Prepared by S. Betül Ceran
• Feyza Merve Isik

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What is a directory?

• Storage of information like databases
• Difference from databases
• simpler
• hierarchical
• does not include complex transactions

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What is LDAP?

• LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol)
• an Internet protocol that enables us to look up
  information from a server or use services
• used by email and other programs

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More LDAP...

• Supported by IBM, Microsoft, Netscape, etc
• LDAP Servers, LDAP clients, LDAP-aware programs
• Three types of LDAP servers
• Big public servers,
• Large organizational servers at universities and
  corporations,
• Smaller LDAP servers for workgroups.

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Goals of LDAP

• No OSI stack
• Directly over TCP
• Only DUA - DSA communication
• Most protocol data elements ordinary strings
• Easier to implement
• Better performance.

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LDAP Architecture

• Information Namespace
• Entries, attribute type, attribute syntax,
  attribute value, matching rule, object classes
• Each entry has a Distinguished Names(DN)

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LDAP Architecture

• Functions
• Authentication and Control Operations bind,
  unbind, abandon.
• Interrogation operations search, compare.
• Update operations add, delete, modify

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Search with LDAP

• Three search criteria
• base DN
• filter
• scope
• Search parameters
• Size limit, time limit, attrsOnly, filter,
  attributes
• equality, negation operators, substring,
  approximate, and, or, and comparison operators

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Security

• Two steps at the beginning
• Authentication Who are you?
• Authorization What can you do?
• Disadvantage spammers!
• Pay attention to information access rights!
• Do not let unknown application to talk the LDAP
  server

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Why important for Enterprises?

• Single-sign-on
• No duplicate information
• Access information or service from anywhere
• Performance improved by simplicity
• Works with IMAP, POP, SMTP auth, FTP, HTTP auth,
  RSH, SSH

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Users Process Admin System
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Users LDAP Directories Systems
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Compatible Technologies

• Active Directory (by Microsoft)
• More capabilities
• X.500 (by ITU)
• More Complex

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Any guestions?