Gartner Research

Active Directory Bridge Products: Getting More Value from the Windows Infrastructure

Published: 07 January 2009

ID: G00203638

Analyst(s): Mark Diodati

Summary

Senior Analyst Mark Diodati surveys products in the Active Directory (AD) bridge market. Organizations deploy these products (from Centrify, Likewise Software, Quest Software [previously Vintela], and Symark Software) to improve compliance, reduce costs, and reduce user sign-ons. AD bridge products enable the security policy management of UNIX and Mac OS computers, identity management of non-Windows users, and Windows Kerberos single sign-on (SSO) across heterogeneous platforms. Diodati also examines the complexity associated with normalizing the UNIX namespace and makes recommendations for successful deployment and vendor selection.

Table Of Contents

Summary of Findings

Analysis

  • Drivers
    • Compliance
    • Cost Reduction
    • Productivity
  • The Fractured UNIX Identity
  • Deployment Models
    • UNIX Server
    • UNIX Workstation
  • Market Impact
    • The Conflation of the UNIX Security Market
  • Recommendations
    • Clean Your Windows
    • Normalize the UNIX User Namespace
    • . . . And Keep Really Good Records
    • Integrate the Identity Provisioning System
    • Choose the Right Vendor

The Details

  • UNIX Workstation vs. Server
  • AD Authentication
  • Single Sign-On
    • SSO to UNIX Servers
    • SSO from UNIX Workstations
  • Identity Management
    • Multiple UNIX Namespaces
    • Provisioning Integration
    • UID Normalization
  • Group Policy Management
    • AD Bridge Group Policy Management
    • UNIX Security Product Settings
    • Mac OS Policies
    • Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP)
  • Auditing and Reporting
  • Pricing
    • Core Pricing
    • SSO Pricing
  • Administrative Consoles
  • Integration with UNIX Security Products
    • Quest Privilege Manager for UNIX and Symark PowerBroker
    • Platform Support
  • Kerberos 101
    • Privilege Attribute Certificate
    • PAM and Name Service Switch
    • Account Mapping
    • Support for Stronger Authentication
  • Windows Group Policy 101
  • The Evolution of UNIX Authentication
    • The Password File
    • Network Information Service
    • LDAP
  • The UID Problem

Conclusion

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