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What Are Some Good Open Source Alternatives to Active Directory?

Is there an alternative (preferably FREE/Open Source) to Active Directory. Either managed via Windows or Linux environment.

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Active Directory is a huge system. Which aspects of its functionality are you looking to use? – ErikA Jan 20 at 15:27
Usually, this is done with Samba (for getting auth and much more to Windows machines) and/or openldap (for the directory services functionality). AD is very tightly integrated into Windows, so it's not going to be able to do a drop in replacement for all it's functionality. – malcolmpdx Jan 20 at 15:31
@ErikA everything... object management and manipulation for workstation clusters in the windows environment. But I see questions like mine are unnacceptable. – Mechaflash Jan 20 at 15:55
@Mechaflash - there is nothing that replicates all of AD's functionality. Of course this begs the question - if you want all of AD's functionality, why not just use AD? – ErikA Jan 20 at 15:57
We are a non-profit group, and getting the licenses to support our infrastructure is too costly. – Mechaflash Jan 20 at 15:57
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closed as exact duplicate by Greg Askew, SvenW, Jim B, splattne♦ Jan 20 at 15:57

This question covers exactly the same ground as earlier questions on this topic; its answers may be merged with another identical question. See the FAQ for guidance on how to improve it.

2 Answers

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Samba 4 has been stated to be incorporating AD features. But Samba 4 has been in development for a while now. Like stated above, the functionality would most likely be limited.

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Thanks. Just started looking into Samba 4. It's still in Alpha. However, we are a non-profit that can't afford active directory licenses so it's worth a shot. – Mechaflash Jan 20 at 15:56
A non-profit should be able to obtain special pricing from Microsoft, for example through TechSoup. If your organisation isn't tech focussed, you will likely spend more money overall getting an OpenSource solution implemented than just getting Windows Server 2008 R2 at non-profit rates. – dunxd Jan 20 at 16:05
Also, if you can point out the functionality of AD that you need, I am sure we can come up with more solutions for you. – Tim Jan 20 at 16:05
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It depends. AD provides a wide range of services. It may be possible to find alternatives to all of them, however I don't think you'll find a single solution that replicates all of the functionality.

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