In Oracle Solaris you can select from three types of naming services: local files, NIS, and DNS. Naming services maintain critical information about the machines on a network, such as the host names, IP addresses, and so forth. You can also use the LDAP directory service in addition to or instead of a naming service. LDAP is a secure network protocol that is used to access directory servers for distributed naming and other directory services. This standard based protocol supports a hierarchal database structure. The same protocol can be used to provide naming services in both UNIX and multi-platform environments. For an introduction to naming services in Oracle Solaris, refer to Chapter 1, About Naming and Directory Services, in Working With Oracle Solaris 11.2 Directory and Naming Services: DNS and NIS .
The configuration of the network databases is critical. Therefore, you need to decide which naming or directory service to use as part of the network planning process. Moreover, the decision to use naming services also affects whether you organize your network into an administrative domain.
For a naming or directory service, you can select from the following:
NIS or DNS – The NIS and DNS naming services maintain network databases on several servers on the network. Working With Oracle Solaris 11.2 Directory and Naming Services: DNS and NIS describes these naming services and explains how to configure the databases. In addition, the guide explains the namespace and administrative domain concepts in more detail.
LDAP – You can also use the LDAP directory service in addition to or instead of a naming service. LDAP is a secure network protocol that is used to access directory servers for distributed naming and other directory services.
Local files – If you do not implement NIS, DNS, or LDAP, the network uses local files to provide the naming service. The term “local files” refers to the series of files in the /etc directory that the network databases use. The procedures in this book assume you are using local files for your naming service, unless otherwise indicated.