Overview of User Directory Web Part

Overview of User Directory Web Part

Many companies use Active Directory Services to manage their users. With the addition of SharePoint, another user directory database has been introduced – the User Profile Database. But even with SharePoint features such as Single Sign On and automatic importing of Active Directory profile information to SharePoint, the bulk of the workload to maintain user information is still on the Administrator. What is lacking is a way to allow the owners of the user information to maintain it themselves, both safely and securely, using either database as their directory service source.

User Directory provides a quick and easy way to manage real-time user information in the SharePoint User Profile and Active Directory Services databases. User Directory takes user management one step further to make SharePoint the central place for managing directory services. hw08004.gifMaintain your current IT user administration policies and standards by providing an easy to use, SharePoint-based self-service directory for users to maintain on their own.

User Directory reads and updates user profile data from SharePoint Portal Server’s User Profile database or an Active Directory database. The diagram shown here depicts how each of these components fit together as part of the solution.