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LDAP SDK for Smalltalk

What is LDAP?

LDAP is the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol. It is used to search, retrieve, add, modify, and remove entries from dynamic, extensible directories accessed using TCP/IP. It is also used to query and modify the directory schema. LDAP directories are used (or are planning to be used) to:

Publish contact information (name, phone numbers, e-mail address, street address, web page URL, etc.) about people and organizational units within an organization.
Act as a central repository for authentication, user profiles/preferences, and configuration information for network services such as web, e-mail, news, etc.
Serve as the center for PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) implementations. LDAP directories can publish public key certificates and certificate revocation lists in a standard way. Public key implementations can be used to secure transactions, encrypt information, digitally sign documents, or assure safety of downloaded computer code and applications.
Refer inquiries to other LDAP directories, thereby enabling large-scale, distributed directory services.

LDAP directories are becoming central to network implementations from Cisco, Novell, Microsoft, Netscape, IBM, Lucent, and other major companies.

What is the SDK?

The LDAP Software Development Kit provides a set of standard services to allow client and server applications to access and manipulate an LDAP compliant directory. It defines a core set of object classes useful in carrying out LDAP transactions. It provides a set of high-level methods for working with LDAP directories, shielding developers and their applications from low-level details of network encoding, transaction management, exception handling, and so on.

This Smalltalk SDK was ported from the Netscape Java LDAP SDK. In this case, a port has several advantages:

Making future enhancements and maintaining compliance with changes in LDAP technology is simplified.
Existing Netscape Java LDAP SDK developer documentation can be leveraged, since the purpose and structure of classes and methods is the same across the two language versions.

How can I obtain the SDK?

The Smalltalk LDAP SDK is available free under the terms of the Mozilla Public License.

Questions about the Smalltalk LDAP SDK can be addressed to Matt Rosen.