Solaris CIFS Administration Guide

Authentication, Directory, Naming, and Time Services

This section describes the various services that the Solaris CIFS service interoperates with as a client.

The Solaris CIFS service interoperates with a variety of naming services that are used by Windows and Solaris system networks. These naming services include the following:

Active Directory Service (AD). AD is a Windows 2000 directory service that is integrated with the Domain Name System (DNS). AD runs only on domain controllers. In addition to storing and making data available, AD protects network objects from unauthorized access and replicates objects across a network so that data is not lost if one domain controller fails.
Domain Name System (DNS). DNS resolves host names to Internet Protocol (IP) addresses for the system. This service enables you to identify a server by either its IP address or its name.
Dynamic DNS (DDNS). DDNS is provided with AD and enables a client to dynamically update its entries in the DNS database.
Lightweight Data Access Protocol (LDAP). LDAP is a standard, extensible directory access protocol that enables clients and servers that use LDAP naming services to communicate with each other.
Network Information Service (NIS). NIS is a naming service that focuses on making network administration more manageable by providing centralized control over a variety of network information. NIS stores information about the network, machine names and addresses, users, and network services.
Network Time Protocol (NTP). NTP is a protocol that enables a client to automatically synchronize its system clock with a time server. The clock is synchronized each time the client is booted and any time it contacts the time server.
Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS). A WINS server resolves NetBIOS names to IP addresses, which allows computers on your network to locate other NetBIOS devices more quickly and efficiently. The WINS server runs on a Windows system. The WINS server performs a similar function for Windows environments as a DNS server does for UNIX environments. For more information, see How to Configure WINS.