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Starting in Release 5.0.5, the Dircat task (Directory Cataloger) can aggregate entries from multiple secondary Domino directories into a database created from the PUBNAMES.NTF template, the template also used to create the Domino Directory. This style of directory catalog is called an Extended Directory Catalog. The Extended Directory Catalog combines advantages of the Domino Directory and the standard Directory Catalog -- it aggregates entries from multiple Domino directories into a single directory database while retaining the full set of indexed views and other features of the Domino Directory.

This hybrid design based on the Domino Directory provides more flexibility and faster responses locating entries because a server can virtually always use views to quickly look up names. In contrast, to look up names in a standard Server Directory Catalog created from the DIRCAT50.NTF template, a server must do full-text searches -- a slower lookup process than view lookups -- when the name formats don't correspond to the "Sort by" configuration setting.

Since the Extended Directory Catalog contains the views that are in a standard Domino Directory and combines multiple directories into one database, it can be quite large. Therefore don't replicate the database to Notes clients and use as few replicas on servers as feasible.

Servers use Directory Assistance to determine the location(s) of an Extended Directory Catalog. One Directory Assistance document, and therefore one set of naming rules, applies to all the directories aggregated into an Extended Directory Catalog. Therefore if you want to trust some secondary directories for Web user authentication but not others, you should create one Extended Directory Catalog that aggregates the trusted directories and a second that aggregates untrusted directories. Then create a Directory Assistance document for each catalog and enable "Trusted for Credentials" only in the one for the trusted Extended Directory Catalog.


When to use an Extended Directory Catalog
We recommend using an Extended Directory Catalog in place of the standard Directory Catalog on the server, especially on servers that are handling a large volume of message or user traffic. Our expectation is that in these cases the use of the Extended Directory Catalog will help improve Router performance. For more information, see the topic "Using Extended Directory Catalog to improve Router performance" in the Troubleshooting section.

You can also use the Extended Directory Catalog as a means of "publishing" a controlled version of secondary Domino directories to users. Control the content of the published directories by using the "Additional field to include" and "Selection formula" configuration settings. If you use the Extended Directory Catalog in this way, you can make the source Domino directories more secure by tightly controlling which users access them directly.

Caution: Do not convert a primary Domino Directory (NAMES.NSF) to an Extended Directory Catalog.

Setting up an Extended Directory Catalog

1. If you currently use the standard Server Directory Catalog, disable it by removing its file name from the "Directory Catalog database name on this server" field in the Basics tab of the Server documents. Or, remove its file name from the "Directory catalog database name for domain" field in the Public Directory Profile document, if you've specified the file name there rather than in Server documents.

2. On the server that runs the Dircat task, use the File->Database->New command to create the Extended Directory Catalog from the PUBNAMES.NTF template. Give the database a unique file name and title; don't give it the file name NAMES.NSF.

Note: It is not necessary to create a full-text index.

3. In the ACL of the database you created in step 2, set the Default access to "Reader".

4. Open the database you created in step 2, then choose Create->Aggregate Configuration, fill out the Configuration document, and click Save and Close. This document has most of the same configuration choices as the Configuration document used in the standard Server Directory Catalog. However, if you want to include Server documents in the Extended Directory Catalog, you can do so by selecting the "Include Servers" option. Also, there is no "Sort by" option -- the Extended Directory Catalog retains all the indexed views in the Directory, so this option is unnecessary.

The Server - Aggregate Directory Configuration view shows the saved configuration document.

Keep these points in mind when you configure an Extended Directory Catalog:

• Don't aggregate the primary Domino Directory into an Extended Directory Catalog.
• If the "Additional fields to include" configuration field is blank, the Dircat task aggregates all fields from the source directory documents.
• To use the Extended Directory Catalog for Web user authentication, you must use the "Additional fields to include" configuration field to aggregate additional fields. To use name and passwords to authenticate Web users, add the HTTPPassword field to the configuration. To use X.509 client certificates to authenticate Web users, add the UserCertificate field.

• Next to Domain type, select Notes, not LDAP.
• Next to Domain name, make up a unique domain name. Do not specify the name of the primary domain.
• If you want to trust the directory catalog for Web user authentication, include a rule that is "Trusted for Credentials."
• In the replicas tab, specify one or more replicas of the Extended Directory Catalog. In a large domain it's important that there be more than one replica for performance and failover reasons.
See Domino 5 Administration Help or the book Administering the Domino System for more information on configuring Directory Assistance.