Conversation comes back around to virtual directories

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: DAVE KEARNS ON IDENTITY MANAGEMENT
08/08/05
Today's focus: Conversation comes back around to virtual
directories

Dear security.world@gmail.com,

In this issue:

* What the Identarati are talking about now
* Links related to Identity Management
* Featured reader resource
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Today's focus: Conversation comes back around to virtual
directories

By Dave Kearns

Identity, it has been said, is the platform on which Web
services is built. But identity services are also built on a
platform, and that platform is the directory.

Many computer applications, services (and even operating
systems) have their own directory - the place where user
information and data is stored. Creating another directory is
child's play - that's why most enterprises have so many of them.
To some, the answer to that problem is a meta-directory such as
Microsoft's Identity Integration Server. But it really irks me
when people suggest that the solution to the multitude of
datastores for directory information is to install yet another
directory. Virtual directories provide most of the benefits of
meta-directories, but without the need for establishing a new,
enterprise-wide "uber" directory system.

There are currently, as far as I can tell, four companies that
are primarily in the virtual directory business: Radiant Logic,
OctetString, MaXware and SymLabs. I try to follow them closely
because I believe that their products are absolutely necessary
for the "interesting" things that the "Identarati" like to do.

<aside> Mark Dixon
<http://blogs.sun.com/roller/page/identity?entry=identarati>
reminded me of the term "Identarati," which Burton Group
associate research director Mike Neuenschwander used at last
month's Catalyst conference to describe "those of us who make
our living in the identity industry - in other words, those of
us who are forced (or compelled) to get this stuff." </aside>

I've known Michel Prompt Radiant Logic founder and CEO, and
Clayton Donley OctetString founder and CTO, for many years. In
these newsletters, I've talked about them and quoted them more
often than just about anyone else. At their respective
companies, they both work on a single product: Radiant Logic's
Radiant One server and OctetString's Virtual Directory Server.
They do one thing and they do it very well.

I've known MaXware almost as long, but don't get to see CTO Tor
Even Dahl very often (he's in Trondheim, Norway. I'm not) but
it's always a pleasure when I do. SymLabs is fairly new to me
having first come across the company last year. But it is a
relatively young company - it wasn't founded until after I'd
already written about the other three virtual directory vendors.
I did get to catch up with MaXware Sales and Marketing Vice
President Felix Gaehtgens and Chief Architect Sampo Kellomdki
(along with Dahl, Donley and Prompt) at the recent Catalyst
conference.

All four companies are still stressing the value and benefit of
virtualization for the directory space. All four, in fact, said
that the needs of provisioning and federation would be best
served with a virtual directory as the basis of the
architecture. Symlabs and MaXware have already announced
Federation servers built on their virtual engines (Symlabs is
shipping its product, while MaXware's server is due out late
this year). Radiant Logic and OctetString are content - for now
- to allow their technology partners to add federation services
to their directory products.

All seemed excited by what's happening in the directory -
especially the virtual directory - space. It's possible, in
fact, that the latest buzz in identity - user-centric identity -
could provide the impetus to thrust virtual directories back
into the forefront of the identity conversation. I'll explore
that a bit more next time.

The top 5: Today's most-read stories

1. First family of Windows Vista viruses unleashed
<http://www.networkworld.com/nldsv4531>

2. The CEO's sidekick
<http://www.networkworld.com/nldsv4532>

3. BellSouth sues AT&T
<http://www.networkworld.com/nldsv4533>

4. Leaked Cisco slides pulled after legal threats
<http://www.networkworld.com/nldsv4534>

5. Cisco vulnerability posted to Internet
<http://www.networkworld.com/nldsv4535>
_______________________________________________________________
To contact: Dave Kearns

Dave Kearns is a writer and consultant in Silicon Valley. He's
written a number of books including the (sadly) now out of print
"Peter Norton's Complete Guide to Networks." His musings can be
found at Virtual Quill <http://www.vquill.com/>.

Kearns is the author of three Network World Newsletters: Windows
Networking Tips, Novell NetWare Tips, and Identity Management.
Comments about these newsletters should be sent to him at these

respective addresses: <mailto:windows@vquill.com>,
<mailto:netware@vquill.com>, <mailto:identity@vquill.com>.

Kearns provides content services to network vendors: books,
manuals, white papers, lectures and seminars, marketing,
technical marketing and support documents. Virtual Quill
provides "words to sell by..." Find out more by e-mail at
<mailto:info@vquill.com>
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponsored by Nokia
Empower Your Mobile Enterprise

Nokia believes that business mobility will fundamentally change
the way work gets done-and for the better. To allow the entire
organization to get the most from this paradigm shift in
productivity, Nokia Enterprise Solutions focuses on delivering
increased efficiency through enhanced mobility. Learn more by
downloading this white paper today!
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=109944
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