Apple Directory Services#

Rather than repeat it all here, I will defer to Wikipedia for most information.

Basically Apple uses OpenLDAP and a corresponding authentication model composed of Apple Password Server and Kerberos 5 tied together using a modular Directory Services system.

Directory Services Framework#

In a more general sense, Open Directory can describe the plugins model used by Directory Utility and the directory services framework in Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server. This could be thought of as analogous to the Name Service Switch systems of some other Unix-like operating systems. When connected to a directory system, a Mac OS X client or Server can authenticate users, lookup contacts, perform service discovery and name resolution with the following types of directories:

• Authentication & Contacts
  • Microsoft Active Directory
  • LDAPv3, including an Open Directory domain or RFC 2307-compliant system
  • Apple/NeXT NetInfo domains
  • BSD flat files and NIS
• Service Discovery & Name Resolution
  • AppleTalk
  • Microsoft Windows (NetBIOS and WINS)
  • Service Location Protocol (SLP)
  • Multicast DNS (Bonjour/Zeroconf)

Apple Computer OID#

Apple Computer OID is used to define their custom LDAP Schema extensions.

More Information#

There might be more information for this subject on one of the following:

• 1.3.6.1.4.1.63
• LDAP Server Implementations