Integrating Macs into Windows Networks

CHAPTER 4 Extending Active Directory to Handle Mac Clients Natively

As you saw in the previous chapter, one way of managing the Mac clients you’ve bound to Active Directory is to bind a Mac OS X server into your network and use it to manage the Macs. Like the other computers on the network, the Macs get their authentication from Active Directory; but unlike the other computers, the Macs get their policy from Open Directory running on the Mac server.

This arrangement can work well, and it saves you from having to modify Active Directory in order to manage your Mac clients. But if you don’t want to use this kind of “magic triangle” or dual-directory setup, and prefer to manage the Macs through Active Directory without involving Open Directory, ...