General FAQ

Directory Server Enterprise Edition provides enterprises, service providers and telecommunications companies with an identity repository that can store securely millions of identities, to be accessed by hundreds of applications with different password policies, and reduce cost of maintenance with one directory to provide authentication and authorization for them all. DSEE is the only solution in the market that gives customers a directory server, virtual directory, proxy server, web console and synchronization with Active Directory available all in one license.

DSEE allows companies to grow faster and easier. The 3x improvement in performance allows companies to accelerate their applications while reducing their total cost of ownership. Companies can reduce cost by improving serviceability with faster import times, new easy upgrade in place, and with the only solution in the market that gives customers a directory server, virtual directory, proxy server, web console and synchronization with Active Directory available all in one license. Organizations need a identity repository that can store securely millions of identities, to be accessed by hundreds of applications with different password policies, and reduce cost of maintenance with one directory to provide authentication and authorization for them all.

Don't let the word "Enterprise" in the product name fool you. The use of the word is not to imply scale, but is rather a reference to "a business organization." The Directory Server Enterprise Edition is horizontal in nature and applies to any industry where identities and users need to be managed securely and efficiently. Directory Server Enterprise Edition scales for enterprises from tens of thousands to the hundreds of millions found in service provider environments, including government, telco/wireless operators, financial, retail, healthcare, manufacturing, energy & utilities, and education to name a few.

Directory Server Enterprise Edition is the most widely supported and also the best-supported directory on the market, according to Radicati, it has the largest number of deployments serving internet based applications than any commercial directory in the market. DSEE is the data repository for Sun OpenSSO Enteprise, Java System Portal Server, and Java System Communications Server.

Yes, the Directory Server Enterprise Edition LDAP SDKs (Software Development Kits) for C and Java programming languages help streamline writing client applications for the directory. These APIs expose all of the functions for connecting to an LDAP directory and accessing or modifying its entries. They can be used to design and integrate directory functionality into applications at the programmatic level. More on the Directory Server Enterprise Edition SDK can be found at www.sun.com/developer. These are now supported items only for our Directory Server Enterprise Edition customers with a valid maintenance contract, which means customers can submit bugs and even request hotfixes, should a problem be encountered -- something that no other vendor provides. Also, we are providing our contribution back to Mozilla so others, including application vendors, can get access to those APIs through the Mozilla open source project.

Directory Server Enterprise Edition comes standard with the Directory Server Resource Kit, which provides tools for optimizing performance, creating and performing benchmarks, tuning the system for high performance and troubleshooting directory problems. In addition, Sun has developed one of the most powerful load-generation testing applications on the market called SLAMD, which is freely available, by request, at www.slamd.com. It includes all the tests an enterprise needs to thoroughly performance-test deployment of Sun's Directory Server.

Sun Java System Directory Server Enterprise Edition supports LDAP versions 2 and 3 plus popular extensions, including server-side sorting, persistent search, proxied authorization, virtual list view, and password modify.

Yes, Directory Server Enterprise Edition can help comply with Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA, European Data Privacy regulations and several other government regulations via enhanced security. DSEE serves as the backbone to an enterprise identity infrastructure by providing a central repository for storing and managing identity profiles, access privileges, and application and network resource information. It provides proxy services for firewall-like protection against malicious attempts to compromise directory servers. DSEE provides robust access and audit logging, which can be used to determine who accessed what and when. It also includes scripts that process these logs to create reports. DSEE further improves security through its ability to deny or allow access based on IP address, group membership, and other criteria. Also, it supports encryption mechanisms to protect data on the disk and while being transferred through communications channels. DSEE supports fractional replication and data hiding based on access, both of which can be used to comply with EU privacy regulations.

Sun's Directory Server Enterprise continues to innovate and provide continuous leadership in the market.

Directory Server underpins the identity infrastructure for the world's largest global companies:

• All of the top 10 financial institutions
• 8 of the top 10 telco services
• 7 of the top 10 wireless telcos
• 7 of the top 10 auto manufacturers
• 7 of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies
• 6 of the top 10 aerospace and defense enterprises
• 3 of the top 5 airlines

According to Radicati Group (December 2003, December 2004, December 2005 and December 2006), the Sun Java System Directory Server is the market share leader (Enterprises / Carriers / Service Providers) for 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 -- 6 years in row.

Bits are available from either source:

• Download from http://www.sun.com/software/products/directory_srvr_ee/get.jsp (packaged and compressed archives)
• Java Enterprise System Media kit  (packaged version for DS and DPS on Java ES main DVD and compressed archived for all DSEE components from Supplemental JES DVD; please check price list for appropriate JES media part numbers)

A list of standards is provided as part of the DSEE tech specs.

If you are entitled to receive upgrades of DSEE 7.0, Sun has improved the upgrade experience with upgrade in place features. These features help migrate data and policies you have created within your DSEE 6.3 environment minimizing the cost and downtime associated with upgrades. More information on this process can be found at: http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/dirsvr.ee#hic

Yes, media kits for DS 6 are available (please check price list for appropriate DS 6 media part number). Also, downloads for all components are available from the Sun Download Center.

Yes, Sun Directory Server Enterprise Edition has entered phase 2 (limited support) of its service life. Customers can continue to get security fixes for the product but Sun will no longer provide feature or fixes for features as of Jan. 1, 2010. Customers who want to get continued support for features within their Directory Server are encouraged to upgrade to 7.0 or 6.3.1. Please see Sun's EOL/EOSL policy information.