Enumerating via LDAP

So, what is LDAP? The reason why it sounds familiar to us is because we use it as a database to store user account information and object information about our network. Microsoft utilizes it in Active Directory. Novell e-directory also utilizes it and, of course, Apple uses Open Directory. Now, this is the technology that contains or stores our user accounts and our computer accounts. From an Active Directory perspective, it contains/stores everything that's involved in our Microsoft platform.

Some people think Microsoft stole this technology from Novell, but LDAP is an open standard. Novell followed it first with e-directory. Microsoft then followed up behind them by using their implementation, called Active Directory. Because these are open standards, there's a lot of similarity between the names and the syntax being utilized.

Now, full disclosure here... I'm not a big fan of Apple, but Apple's Open Directory is also another implementation...