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Best FOSS Active Directory Alternative?
danboid writes "I'm an IT technician at a large school near Manchester, England. We currently have two separate networks (one for pupils, one for staff) each with its own Windows Server 2003 Active Directory box handling authentication and storing users' files. We're planning on restructuring the network soon and we'd like to be able to replace the two aging AD servers with a single, more powerful Linux server running an open source OpenLDAP implementation. The main contenders for this purpose seem to be Fedora Directory Server, OpenDS, and Apache Directory Server; but I've been unable to find meaningful comparisons among the three. I'd like to hear which solution Slashdot readers recommend. What is your experience with ease of implementation / maintenance? Any stories of similar (un)successful migrations? Any other tips for an organization wanting to drop AD for a FOSS equivalent?"
The main contenders for this purpose seem to be Fedora Directory Server, OpenDS, and Apache Directory Server
Seeing as you don't even mention Samba, I assume you are trying to avoid drop-in replacements for AD?
OK buddy, you have done your job and made enough noises about FOSS. Your $large_discount coupon from MSFT is ready and waiting, mention coupon code EGDI. Coupon good for getting all MSFT software for free. Manufacturers Coupon, Never expires.
sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
Mandriva Directory Server + Pulse 2
SME Server is, by my observation, the best Windows network server distro I have yet seen. While I don't agree with many of the underlying philosophies, I cannot deny the results. It is STABLE. It is usable. It is very maintainable. Installation is brain dead simple.
SME Server 8 is in beta at the moment but I recommend giving it a once-over. It is quite impressive. And did I mention it installs from a single CD?
but the first thing to do is look at how these have been deployed
I dont see anyone with production systems on a large domain using anthing other than redhat directory or Novell eDirectory
I see some custom OpenLDAP servers scale really well but thats about it
so given your choice above I would go for Fedora Directory Server and hack
if the choice was mine I would spend a little money and get the Novell eDirectory
regards
John Jones
http://www.johnjones.me.uk - email and digital communication
I'm a network admin for a tech college here in the states. We really use the hell out of group policy. We use an AD server for managing the directory and UNIX (FreeBSD mostly) boxes for handling everything else. The UNIX boxes act as member servers in the domain.
Unfortunately there's nothing that really supports things like group policy and the like for Windows but well..... Windows Server.
Samba4 is supposed to change this but it may be a while before it's ready for widespread use.
In a school environment, you really want the Group Policy and automated software deployment features. Unfortunately, due to the closed nature of Windows, Windows Server is the only product capable of pulling off managing windows desktops well. You can hand-create policy files for machines but it's a pain in the ass and hard to maintain in the long run. Samba3 can act like an NT4 PDC if you wanted to do this though.
This is rapidly changing. If I were you, I'd deploy Linux or BSD for everything BUT the directory servers and then migrate when Samba4 is ready for prime time.
Students are great at f**king up machines, group policy is almost a must.
If you don't need centralized management of the desktops themselves, just the users and groups, etc, then there are several solutions that would work well. In a school though, I really recommend either dumping PC's entirely and go with OSX on the desktop and OSX Server or sticking with AD for directory services.
Don't even start with the flames. Linux and BSD are awesome but until you can run Photoshop, Indesign, etc that the syllabii for certain classes call for in a supported fashion, it's NOT going to happen. OSX happens to be a UNIX with good commercial desktop apps that aren't half-assed and it's semi-open.
I don't often recommend SUN products with the exception of Solaris but Sun Java System Directory Server Enterprise Edition has actually proven to be a very stable solution. I don't believe its open source but I believe it is free. There is also an identity synchronization tool that allows you to sync your LDAP to AD servers if needed. Handles multimaster replication between however many nodes flawlessly with very good performance in my experience. It'll run on Windows,Linux, or of course Solaris.
Good luck, LDAP is a pain in the ass ;)
I've messed with the so-called "Active Directory replacements". They all suck.
The fact is, if you are using Windows clients, Active Directory works, it's simple, and you'd be fucking CRAZY to try to use anything else. Save yourself some pain, and blow $1000 (pounds, whatever) on Server 2003 or 2008.
Seriously. You don't want to do this. It's a fucking nightmare to try to support a Windows domain without a real, genuine Microsoft domain controller.
Did I mention this is a bad idea?
I'm not sure I understand the point... I mean I hate Windows as much as the next *nix-lovr, but if your network is a slew of Winboxen... why make a headache for yourself? Active Directory is pretty well received, even as a proprietary LDAP implementation... will a FOSS replacement really be worth the cost savings? If most of the machines to be managed are Windows, I'd use AD for them. If its a mixed network with mostly something else, then I'd attempt to shoehorn the management of the Winboxes with whatever implementation was easiest for the majority of the machines (i.e. if 200 OS X machines & 40 Winbox, I'd use Open Directory... if 90 debian & 15 winbox, likely OpenLDAP, etc.)
You don't hate AD as much as you think you do... do what is easiest... if AD is already deployed, its probably easiest).
The Admin and the Engineer
I have set up four installations of SMEserver 7.x in the past 8 months into small businesses. I think I have put a collective 24 man hours into keeping those sites up. They stay up... keep going and going and going... and running Linux, I don't have nearly as much to worry about with critical worms running around and the like. Meanwhile, keeping up with my Microsoft AD network keeps my family fed and me employed full time. I am not complaining, I am just saying if TCO is largely factored by time/labor? SME server beats Microsoft hands down so far.
Microsoft does not justifiably dominate the market. It simply dominates the way it does with all other things it does. MSIE is the best web browser, I suppose, as evidenced by its dominance as well..?
Do you really want to use software named after a racist slur?
No, it's not a direct comparison to the GIMP situation. The slur is Sambo ; the software is Samba . There's a difference. But is there a racial slur against trolls?
Red Hat offers 24x7 support for Red Hat Enterprise Directory. I'm pretty sure Novell has a similar product for SuSE that they offer 24x7 support on.
It's not like your only choice for 24x7 support is Microsoft.
My blog
First of all, why use crappy openldap when you can use the Netspace directory server that red hat bought and opensourced.
I have foung openLDAP to be reliable, compatible and easy to use. Can you elaborate on why you think it is crap?
There is a reason why they paid 23$ millions for it...
And the reasons are?
Then, AD isn't just a LDAP server with usernames and passwords....
Nor is openLDAP just a store for Windows user names and passwords. I use an openLDAP server for Windows services as well as providing user configuration for other services such as sendmail. The great advantage of using FOSS is that you are free from vendor lock in and can consider non-proprietary alternatives in other areas of your network.
Which is why many people can only use Windows setups. There's nothing like AD in the FOSS world. To start with, FOSS client apps should be lockdown-able from the server. But you can't do that...
I mean, in a office with a linux server and some linux clients, try to lockdown some options on Firefox, the desktop, evolution....surprise, you can't do it. Oh, yeah, there're a lot of workarounds everywhere, but they are different if you use KDE or Gnome or depending on the app you are using. It's a horrible mess.
Nowhere in the article do I see a desire to use FOSS desktop clients. The submitter simply wants to replace AD server with a non MS LDAP based alternative.
Windows clients and servers, on the other hand, are VERY well coupled. The day someone cares to fix this in the FOSS world, a lot of people will start using Linux in corporate networks.
This is otherwise known as vendor lock in. Some of use have tried very hard to break free of it to avoid being held to ransom by a vendor.
Until then, Windows is pretty much the only realistic option. I can't understand why Red Hat, Suse and Ubuntu don't put more efforts on this, it's one of the biggest showstoppers for Linux adoption.
I have been running what you consider an unrealistic option for the best part of a decade. I have yet to be fired. Sirius the consultancy I recommended have a client list of blue chip companines, local govenment and schools. They are all running some form of FOSS backend. You might like to take a fresh look at FOSS, it really works in the real world.
In my previous post I forgot to mention that OGC/Becta are the government agency's responsible for technology in the UK educational environment. It is considerably easier for a UK school to use a Becta accredited supplier than any other supplier. It is an incredible achievement for Sirius to gain that accreditation as no other FOSS consultancy has managed to cut through government red tape thus far.