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Apple Open Directory

As Apple gains more market share in the enterprise market, it is clear that the need for tools to create better compatibility between the dominant operating systems and the data that they store. Apple Open Directory is an LDAP server implementation released by Apple Inc, after the launch of Mac OS X Server 10.2.

Apple Open Directory is built on top of the core OpenLDAP server, but also includes and authentication framework that makes use of Apple Password Server and Kerberos. Apple Open Directory is frequently used to store centralized management data, user, group, and computer accounts, which other systems can access.

Any Mac OS X Server system configured as an Open Directory Master can act as a Windows Primary Domain Controller (PDC), providing domain authentication services to Microsoft Windows clients, making use of its Open Directory Services framework, and using Kerberos to handle authentication.

Symlabs LDAP Proxy and Virtual Directory Server are capable of making use of Apple Open Directory Server as a backend LDAP server type, and Virtual Directory Server can take advantage of its SASL GSSAPI features to fully interact with Open Directory's Kerberos interface.


Symlabs is now part of Quest Software. A leader in simplifying and reducing the cost of IT management, Quest’s innovative solutions make solving the toughest IT management problems easier, enabling more than 100,000 customers worldwide to save time and money across physical, virtual and cloud environments. The addition of Symlabs virtual directory and federation technology will enhance the overall architecture of the Quest® One Identity Solution and Quest migration products. Learn more at www.quest.com/symlabs.