Before you begin installing Red Hat Directory Server (Directory Server), you should have an understanding of the various Directory Server components and the design and configuration decisions you need to make.
To help you prepare for your Directory Server installation, you should be familiar with the concepts contained in the following sections:
The Red Hat Directory Server Deployment Guide contains basic directory concepts as well as guidelines to help you design and successfully deploy your directory service. Be sure you understand the concepts presented in this manual before proceeding with the installation process.
Directory Server contains the following software components:
Red Hat Console provides the common user interface for Directory Server applications. From it, you can perform common server administration functions such as stopping and starting servers, installing new server instances, and managing user and group information. Red Hat Console can be installed as a stand-alone application on any machine. You can also install it on your network and use it to manage remote servers.
Administration Server is a common front-end to all Directory Servers. It receives communications from Red Hat Console and passes those communications on to the appropriate Directory Server instance. Your site will have at least one Administration Server for each Directory Server root.
Directory Server is Red Hat's LDAP implementation. The Directory Server runs as the ns-slapd process. This is the server that manages the directory databases and responds to client requests. Directory Server is a required component.
The order in which you install and configure the various components depends on whether you are performing a new installation or an upgrade. See Section 1.3 Installation Process Overview for details.