There are three types of configuration repositories that can be implemented:
LDAP: stores the configuration data on an LDAP directory server as additional entries. Desktop Manager supports the following LDAP directory servers:
SunTM Java Systems Directory Server
OpenLDAP
Microsoft Active Directory
The access protocol to query this type of repository is LDAP. However, any other LDAPv3 compliant directory can be used as a repository.
File: stores the configuration data in a filesystem. The Desktop Manager accesses this type of repository directly from the filesystem or through HTTP/HTTPS. For HTTP/HTTPS access, you need to configure a web server so that the Agent can access the configuration repository; the management tools require read/write access to the file system that stores the profiles and assignments.
Hybrid: a hybrid repository reads the organizational structure of the company from an LDAP server, and then read/writes the configuration settings into a file system.
The LDAP Configuration Repository provides the best overall performance. The hybrid repository is best for when you do not have write access to the LDAP directory. The file-based repository is only useful for evaluation purposes.