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What it LDAP Reasons to Use it!
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) is
one of the most renowned and used client/server
protocols used to access and manage directory
information. It is a directory that contains
different kinds of objects like users, groups,
computers, printers and so on. The technology is
designed to read and edit directories over IP
networks and run directly using simple string
formats for data transfer. LDAP is quite common
among the medium to large organizations where the
business and concerned professionals can use
this technology to look up contact info and the
like.
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We all know that every email program has a
personal address book, but how can you reach out
to those who have never used an email? This was
the revolutionary question that led the global
leading brands such as Microsoft, IBM, Lotus,
and Netscape to support a standard called LDAP.
This technology can look up entries in a wide
variety of ways. It can easily index all the
data in their entries and use filters to select
just the person or group you want and fetch the
most important information you want. The good
thing about LDAP is that it is not just limited
to searching for contacts, but it also useful to
look up encryption certificates, pointers to
printers and other services on a network. It is
an ideal technology used for any kind of
directory-like information. Why Choose
LDAP? Open Standard Protocol The best part about
using LDAP is that it is a well-defined protocol.
Unlike the NoSQL database or RDBMS, LDAP is
explicitly specified how clients should encode
requests. When using the alternative technologies
like NoSQL database, youre you are likely to
lock yourself into that one type of database as
this has its protocol.
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When using the NoSQL database, you have to change
clients when you change the servers. Similarly,
with RDBMS will find that SQL is much more
standardized. On the other hand, LDAP is a
well-defined protocol. LDAP offers a wide variety
of directory servers, which means choosing one
doesnt mean that youre stuck with it
forever. Mature but Evolving LDAP is one of the
most used and renowned technologies used by
global brands. This has been around for a while,
with the most recent version of the specification
officially released in December of 1997.
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Earlier to this, various versions and updates for
LDAP have been launched, but not quite
frequently. However, thats not to say that its
stagnant. Because LDAP is a critical component,
theres a lot of competition between vendors that
keep driving performance. LDAP Is
Lightweight Many people may be wondering that
LDAP is an advanced technology, which means it is
going to be quite heavy and complex, but the
best part about LDAP here is that it is quite
lightweight. It is also more lightweight in
comparison to most other modern protocols. The
reason here is the messages in LDAP are encoded
with ASN.1 BER, which is a compact binary
format. Additionally, LDAP uses persistent
connections for communicating with a directory
server that makes a huge difference when it comes
to performance and scalability. LDAP Is
Secure Another important reason that global
businesses prefer using LDAP for their
organizations use is the security it offers.
LDAP directory servers are used as an
authentication repository and they carry most
sensitive information like passwords and other
account details. This makes it important that
your confidential details are secure, which is
only possible with the help of LDAP that comes
with strong encoding mechanisms and constraints
that can prevent any kind of security
damage. Conclusion Options or alternatives to
LDAP are endless, but using the LDAP for
professional use is a smart choice, thanks to
the technology and security offered, which ensure
that the activities done over LDAP are 100
secure for sure.
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