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Metadirectory Origins
The
general explanations below are based upon work undertaken by the
Burton Group in the 1990s. They are conceptual in scope but retain
their relevance today.
1.
What is a identity
data?
2. What is a metadirectory?
3. What are metadirectory services?
4. What do metadirectory services
do?
5. Why do companies need metadirectories?
6. Where did the metadirectory
concept come from?
What is a identity data?
Identity data is key information about a company's
assets. The assets might be personal computers, network devices,
mobile phones, IT applications, etc. but are often people. Typical
information includes e-mail accounts, telephone numbers, contact
addresses, employment details, organisational data, log-in ids,
etc.
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What
is a metadirectory?
A metadirectory is an IT infrastructure element
that provides an aggregation and clearinghouse of shared directory
information. It reconciles identities (collection of relationships)
and consolidates attributes from multiple sources. It can provide
multiple views of information. Note 1
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What
are metadirectory services?
Metadirectory services are tools that produce
a metadirectory. Metadirectory services address both the technical
and political challenges inherent in any large scale directory integration
project. They are typically delivered as a combination product and
professional services offering. Note 1
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What do metadirectory services do?
Technically, metadirectory services consolidate
subsets of the information in multiple directories, including data
on people, groups, roles, organisational units, locations, and other
resources. This consolidation creates a "join," or unified
view, of selected data from different directories in an organisation.
The
metadirectory can make the unified view accessible via LDAP, XML,
HTTP, and other protocols or formats. It can also reflect information
back to the original data sources or new sources.
Metadirectory
services also manage the relationships between existing directories,
allowing data to flow among connected directories in a flexible,
but controllable fashion. While they can consolidate and unify information,
metadirectory services also allow specific people and groups within
an organisation to maintain ownership of that information, reducing
political as well technical problems. Metadirectory services give
organisations the flexibility to push and pull data to and from
a variety of sources, supporting both centralised and decentralised
control within a unified directory infrastructure. Data flows can
include centralised object registration, multi-directional attribute
replication, and synchronisation of entries in connected directories
that other groups manage.
Metadirectory
services can provision Intranet and Extranet services and accounts
in an automated manner. Note 1
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Why
do companies need metadirectories?
The typical large company already has a large
number of disconnected directory products, environments, and namespaces.
Because multiple applications across the enterprise need a common
set of basic information about people, groups, roles, and resources,
many of these directories contain similar information. The cost
of administering redundant and inconsistent directory content is
very high. Inaccurate and incomplete data can compromise security
and user productivity. The difficulty of obtaining good directory
data also creates a strategic barrier to deploying new applications.
In
the era of electronic commerce, virtual corporations, virtual offices,
and continuous business process reengineering, metadirectory services
increase security, reduce costs, improve data quality, and enhance
productivity. Metadirectory services can reduce administrative costs
and increase the quality of information available to users and applications
alike, increasing the return on an organisation's directory investment.
Note 1
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Where
did the metadirectory concept come from?
In 1996, The
Burton Group formalised the "metadirectory"
concept, describing a functional specification of join, centralised
registration, attribute flow, and other directory services. The
Burton Group's full analysis of metadirectory functionality is available
to their clients in the Network Strategy Reports "Enterprise
Directory Infrastructure: Metadirectory Concepts and Functions"
and "Metadirectory Functionality Revisited."
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Note 1: definitions by Directory Workshop, Catalyst'99 Conference
hosted by the Burton Group and NAC.
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