Rules define what data is transferred and how the data is synchronized between the two database. The nds.dtd defines the XML syntax for the rules, and the administrator uses ConsoleOne® (which hides the XML syntax) to create a rule file. The file is then stored in eDirectory™ as XML data in a stream attribute.
In addition to the XML-formatted rules, a driver can use XSLT style sheets for the following:
Whether an XML-formatted rule or an XSLT style sheet, rules transform an input XML document by changing the data or the XML structure to form a result, or output, document. For example, a create rule blocks the creation of an entry by transforming the input document containing the <add> element into an output document that has no <add> element.
Style sheets can be used to generate attribute values for the XML rules. For example, eDirectory does not require that a CN be unique in the eDirectory tree, but only unique for a particular container. A style sheet in a create rule can ensure that a CN is unique for the eDirectory tree.
This chapter describes the transformations caused by the rules, the XML format of the rules (matching, create, and placement), and style sheet restrictions for event transformations, input transformations, and output transformations. Section 9.0, Style Sheets describes implementation details for style sheets.
For an overview of the rules, see Section 4.0, Introduction to the Rules and Filters.
The top rule elements in the nds.dtd are described in the following sections: