Planning directory customization

You can add forms and views to the IBM® Domino® Directory to accommodate specific needs of your company. If you use the LDAP service, you can also use the Domino LDAP Schema database (schema.nsf) to define new object classes and attributes to be added to the directory.

Some of the questions to ask when planning directory customization are:

• To define a new type of entry in the directory, should you use the Schema database or create a form in the Domino Directory instead? If you don't use the LDAP service, you must create a form. If you use the LDAP service you can use the Schema database to define object classes and attributes with some LDAP-specific characteristics that are not available when you create Domino Directory forms. However only LDAP clients, not Notes® and Web clients, can access entries defined only in the Schema database.
• If you use the LDAP service, are there attributes and object classes already defined in the Domino LDAP schema that serve your company's needs? The schema -- the types of directory entries that are defined for the LDAP service -- by default defines many object classes and attributes which you may be able to use rather than adding new ones.
• If your company doesn't use the LDAP service, should you create a form in such a way that it can represent an LDAP object class? It's good practice to create a form that can represent an LDAP object class, so that if in the future your company uses the LDAP service, the design requirements are in place.