1.1 Driver Concepts

1.1.1 Key Terms

Driver shim: A Java file (NdsToNds.jar) loaded directly by Identity Manager. Communicates event changes to be sent from the Identity Manager Driver for eDirectory to an Identity Vault, communicates changes from the Identity Vault to the Identity Manager Driver for eDirectory, and operates as the link that connects the Identity Vault and the Identity Vault Driver object.

Driver: A set of policies, filters, and objects that act as the connector between an Identity Vault and the driver shim.

This software enables an application to publish events from an application to the directory, enables an application to subscribe to events from the directory, and synchronizes data between the directory and applications.

To establish a connection between the Metadirectory engine and an Identity Vault, you specify the driver’s configuration and connection parameters, policies, and filter values.

Driver object: A collection of channels, policies, rules, and filters that connect an application to an Identity Vault that is running Identity Manager.

Each driver performs different tasks. Policies, rules, and filters tell the driver how to manipulate the data to perform those tasks.

The Driver object displays information about the driver’s configuration, policies, and filters. This object enables you to manage the driver and provide eDirectory management of the driver shim parameters.

Identity Vault. A hub, with applications and directories publishing their changes to it. The Identity Vault then sends changes to the applications and directories that have subscribed for them. This results in two main flows of data: the Publisher channel and the Subscriber channel.

1.1.2 How the eDirectory Driver Works

Channels, filters, and policies control data flow.

Publisher and Subscriber Channels

The eDirectory driver is installed and configured in two trees. The driver’s Publisher channel in TreeA communicates with the driver’s Subscriber channel in TreeB. Conversely, the driver’s Publisher channel in TreeB communicates with the driver’s Subscriber channel in TreeA.

Filters

Identity Manager uses filters to control which objects and attributes are shared. The default filter configurations for the eDirectory driver allow objects and attributes to be shared. For a list of synchronized attributes, see Section B.0, Synchronized Attributes.

Policies

Identity Manager uses policies to control data synchronization between the eDirectory driver and the Identity Vaults. The eDirectory driver comes with an example configuration file to set up policies.