5.1 Extending the Schema

You can extend the schema of a tree by creating a new class or attribute. To extend the schema of your eDirectory tree, you need the Supervisor right to the entire tree.

You can extend the schema by

You can extend the schema for auxiliary attributes by

5.1.1 Creating a Class

You can add a class to your existing schema as your organizational needs change.

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Create Class.

  3. Follow the instructions in the Create Class Wizard to define the object class.

    Help is available throughout the wizard.

    If you need to define custom properties to add to the object class, cancel the wizard and define the custom properties first. See Creating an Attribute for more information.

5.1.2 Deleting a Class

You can delete unused classes that aren’t part of the base schema of your eDirectory tree. iManager only prevents you from deleting classes that are currently being used in locally replicated partitions.

You might also want to consider deleting a class from the schema in the following instances:

  • After merging two trees and resolving class differences

  • Any time a class has become obsolete

To delete a class:

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Delete Class.

  3. Select the class you want to delete.

    Only the classes that are allowed to be deleted are shown.

  4. Click Delete.

5.1.3 Creating an Attribute

You can define your own custom types of attributes and add them as optional attributes to existing object classes. You can’t, however, add mandatory attributes to existing classes.

NOTE:Due to a replication issue, attributes in eDirectory other than the stream attribute type cannot contain values larger than 60 KB or 30,000 characters. If a user or application sets the value of a string or binary attribute and exceeds that limit, eDirectory returns a -649 error indicating that the value is too long.

To create a new attribute:

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Create Attribute.

  3. Follow the instructions in the Create Attribute Wizard to define the new attribute.

    Help is available throughout the wizard.

    IMPORTANT:Before allowing the syntax change for an attribute, eDirectory does not check if the attribute is in use by any objects. If an object holds a value for an attribute and the syntax of the attribute is changed through LDAP or ndssch, the value of the attribute is lost. Before attempting the syntax change, you must check if the attribute is in use by any objects.

5.1.4 Adding an Optional Attribute to a Class

You can add optional attributes to existing classes. This might be necessary if

  • Your organization’s informational needs change.

  • You are preparing to merge trees.

NOTE:Mandatory attributes can only be defined while creating a class.

To add an optional attribute class:

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Add Attribute.

  3. Select the class you want to add an attribute to, then click OK.

  4. In the Available Optional Attributes list, select the attributes you want to add, then click Right Arrow graphic to add these attributes to the Add These Optional Attributes list.

    If you add an attribute by mistake or change your mind, select the attribute in the Add These Optional Attributes list, then click Left Arrow graphic to remove it from the list of attributes you want to add.

  5. Click OK.

    Objects you create of this class will now have the properties you added. To set values for the added properties, use the generic Other property page of the object.

HINT:You can modify an existing class by using this page to add to the Current Attributes list. You can remove only attributes you have added prior to clicking OK. You cannot remove any attribute that has been previously added and saved.

5.1.5 Deleting an Attribute

You can delete unused attributes that aren’t part of the base schema of your eDirectory tree.

You might also want to delete an attribute from the schema in the following instances:

  • After merging two trees and resolving attribute differences

  • Any time an attribute has become obsolete

To delete an attribute:

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Delete Attribute.

  3. Select the attribute you want to delete.

    Only the attributes that are allowed to be deleted are shown.

  4. Click Delete.

5.1.6 Creating an Auxiliary Class

An auxiliary class is a set of properties (attributes) added to particular eDirectory object instances rather than to an entire class of objects. For example, an e-mail application could extend the schema of your eDirectory tree to include an E‑Mail Properties auxiliary class and then extend individual objects with those properties as needed.

With Schema Manager, you can define your own auxiliary classes. You can then extend individual objects with the properties defined in your auxiliary classes.

To create an auxiliary class:

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Create Class.

  3. Specify a class name and (optional) ASN1 ID, then click Next.

  4. Select Auxiliary Class when setting the class flags, then click Next.

  5. Follow the instructions in the Create Class Wizard to define the new auxiliary class.

    Help is available throughout the wizard.

5.1.7 Extending an Object with the Properties of an Auxiliary Class

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Object Extensions.

  3. Specify the name and context of the object want to extend, then click OK.

  4. Depending on whether the auxiliary class that you want to use is already listed under Current Auxiliary Class Extensions, complete the appropriate action:

    Auxiliary Class Already Listed?

    Action

    Yes

    Quit this procedure. See Modifying an Object's Auxiliary Properties instead.

    No

    Click Add, select the auxiliary class, then click OK.

  5. Click Close.

5.1.8 Modifying an Object's Auxiliary Properties

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Directory Administration > Modify Object.

  3. Specify the name and context of the object you want to modify, then click OK.

  4. On the General tab, click the Other page.

  5. On the screen that appears, set the attribute values you want.

    • Double-click any unvalued attributes to add them to the list of valued attributes.

    • Select a valued attribute, then click Edit to edit the attribute, or Delete to remove the attribute.

    • You must know the syntax of a property to set it correctly. For more information, see the NetIQ eDirectory Schema Reference.

  6. Click Apply, then click OK.

5.1.9 Deleting Auxiliary Properties from an Object

  1. In NetIQ iManager, click the Roles and Tasks button Roles and Tasks button.

  2. Click Schema > Object Extensions.

  3. Specify the name and context of the object want to extend, then click OK.

  4. In the list of current auxiliary class extensions, select the auxiliary class whose properties you want to delete.

  5. Click Remove, then click OK.

    This deletes all the properties added by the auxiliary class except for any that the object already had innately.

  6. Click Close.