Directory Structures  
 
 

An LDAP directory is usually a hierarchical structure, though this is not a requirement. LDAP supports a flat, or one-level, structure as readily as multiple levels. The illustration below shows a simplified tree of entries from the root level to the individual level.

The complexity and flexibility allowed in this structure is a key to LDAP's success. A directory's structure abstracts the structure of the organization it represents. Properly devising and maintaining this structure is the LDAP server administrator's responsibility. The type, quantity, and accessibility of the information for individual entries will obviously vary widely across organizations and their LDAP servers.

A ColdFusion application developed for an organization's intranet could easily include LDAP query and output capability from its internal LDAP server and from allied servers. Changes in the directory structure would, presumably, be updated in the application code. Venturing into the wider world of the Internet needs special attention, though. Communication with data source administrators is as important in LDAP implementations as it is in other data-driven applications.

 
 
  Viewing directory schema  
 
 

Currently, you cannot use CFLDAP to determine the attributes of an LDAP data source. The syntax requires the distinguished name of an entry to initiate a query. In other words, the user must supply the starting point for a search. Full support of the LDAP 3.0 standard will be enabled in a future ColdFusion release.

As a ColdFusion developer, you must do the work of providing that starting point for your users or for an LDAP query you run internally. The more focus you can provide the user, the more effective the search.

 
 
  LDAP attributes  
 
 

Following is a list of the common attributes:

Common LDAP Attributes
Attribute
Name
c
country
st
state or province
l
locality
o
organization
ou
organizational unit
cn
common name
sn
surname



 
 
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