Are Cloud-based Directory Services replacing Active Directory?
Active directory turns 20 this year!
There is a lot of talk in the community about whether AD is outdated and whether other Cloud-based directory services will replace AD. Before we jump to any conclusion, lets first understand AD in its entirety.
Active Directory (AD) is a Microsoft’s Directory Service for Windows domain networks. Active Directory handles centralized domain management and directory-based identity-related services. It is a framework on which other services such as Certificate Services, Federated Services deployed.
How does Active Directory work?
Active Directory stores data as objects. An object is an element, which may be user, group, application, or device, such as a printer. Objects are general resources -such as printers or computers — or security principals — such as users or groups.
The server which runs Active Directory Domain Service(AD DS) is called a domain controller. Authenticating and authorizing all users and computers in a Windows domain type network is done by AD DS. When a user login into a computer then the active directory checks the submitted user and password and determines whether the user is a system administrator or user. It manages and stores information, provides authentication and authorization mechanisms, and makes a framework to deploy related services: Certificate Services, Active Directory Federation Services, Lightweight Directory Services, and Rights Management Services.
Read more to know more about active directory services and benefits of it.
Originally published at https://www.neovasolutions.com on June 30, 2020.
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