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| | | <para>LDAP entries are arranged hierarchically in the directory. The |
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| | | hierarchical organization resembles a file system on a PC or a web server, |
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| | | often imagined as an upside-down tree structure, looking similar to a |
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| | | pyramid.<footnote><para>Hence pyramid icons are associated with directory |
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| | | servers.</para></footnote>The distinguished name consists of components |
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| | | pyramid. <footnote><para>Hence pyramid icons are associated with directory |
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| | | servers.</para></footnote> The distinguished name consists of components |
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| | | separated by commas, |
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| | | <literal>uid=bjensen,ou=People,dc=example,dc=com</literal>. Those components |
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| | | reflect the hierarchy of directory entries.</para> |
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| | |
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| | | <literal>ou=People,dc=example,dc=com</literal>, an organization unit and |
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| | | parent entry for the people at Example.com. The |
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| | | <literal>ou=People</literal> entry is located under the entry with DN |
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| | | <literal>dc=example,dc=com</literal>, the root entry for Example.com. |
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| | | DC stands for domain component. The directory has other root entries, such |
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| | | <literal>dc=example,dc=com</literal>, the base entry for Example.com. |
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| | | DC stands for domain component. The directory has other base entries, such |
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| | | as <literal>cn=config</literal>, under which the configuration is accessible |
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| | | through LDAP, and potentially others such as |
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| | | <literal>dc=mycompany,dc=com</literal> or <literal>o=myOrganization</literal>. |
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| | | Thus when you look up entries, you specify the parent entry to look under |
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| | | through LDAP. A directory can serve multiple organizations, too. You might |
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| | | find <literal>dc=example,dc=com</literal>, |
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| | | <literal>dc=mycompany,dc=com</literal>, and |
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| | | <literal>o=myOrganization</literal> in the same LDAP directory. |
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| | | Therefore when you look up entries, you specify the base DN to look under |
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| | | in the same way you need to know whether to look in the New York, Paris, |
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| | | or Tokyo phone book to find a telephone number.<footnote> |
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| | | <para>The root entry for the directory, technically the entry with DN |
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