5.3 Directory Services in vCloud
Directory services serve several purposes in vCloud Director. This discussion refers to Microsoft Active Directory, but the same considerations apply for other directory services. Directory services used with vCloud Director include authentication services in the following areas:
• Infrastructure – vCloud Director, vCenter, and other supporting applications that are not managed by vCloud Director.
• vCloud Director Management – Within the vCloud Director portal for the system and organization realms.
• Organizational – Internal to an organization, including vApps contained in an organization.
Note: For considerations that apply to running Active Directory or other clock-shift sensitive directory services within a virtual environment, see the white paper Virtualizing a Windows Active Directory Domain Infrastructure (http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/Virtualizing_Windows_Active_Directory.pdf). The best location for directory services depends on how the services are being used. Locations can be external to an organization, shared inside an organization, or encapsulated and distributed per vApp.
Placement can be guided based on a few key measures. Use the information in the following sections in conjunction with other reference materials to form the basis for an appropriate design.