Active directory

Manage and Protect Vital Information Active Directory helps you manage corporate identities, credentials, information protection, system and application settings through the following technologies: Active Directory Domain Services Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), formerly known as Active Directory Domain Services, is the central location for configuration information, authentication requests, and information about all of the objects that are stored within your forest. Using Active Directory, you can efficiently manage users, computers, groups, printers, applications, and other directory-enabled objects from one secure, centralized location. Active Directory Rights Management Services Your organization’s intellectual property should be safe and highly secure. Active Directory Rights Management Services (AD RMS), a component of Windows Server 2008 R2, is available to help make sure that only those individuals who need to view a file can do so. AD RMS can protect a file by identifying the rights that a user has to the file. Rights can be configured to allow a user to open, modify, print, forward, or take other actions with the rights-managed information. With AD RMS, you can now safeguard data when it is distributed outside of your network. Active Directory Federation Services Active Directory Federation Services is a highly secure, highly extensible, and Internet-scalable identity access solution that allows organizations to authenticate users from partner organizations. Using AD FS in Windows Server 2008 R2, you can simply and very securely grant external users access to your organization’s domain resources. AD FS can also simplify integration between untrusted resources and domain resources within your own organization. Active Directory Certificate Services Most organizations use certificates to prove the identity of users or computers, as well as to encrypt data during transmission across unsecured network connections.