Structure of Entry Names
Each entry in a name service database is identified by a unique global name made up of a cell name and a cell-relative name.
A cell is a group of users, systems, and resources that share common DCE services. A cell configuration includes at least one cell directory server, one security server, and one time server. A cell's size can range from one system to thousands of systems. For information on cells, see the CDS part of this documentation.
The following is an example of a global name:
/.../C=US/O=uw/OU=MadCity/LandS/anthro/Stats_host_2
The parts of a global name are as follows:
· cell name (using X.500 name syntax)
For example:
/.../C=US/O=uw/OU=MadCity
The symbol /... begins a cell name. The letters before the equal signs (=) are abbreviations for country (C), organization (O), and organization unit (OU).
For entries in the local cell, the cell name can be represented by a /.: prefix, instead of the actual cell name; for example,
/.:/LandS/anthro/Stats_host_2
For NSI operations on entries in the local cell you can omit the cell name.
· cell-relative name
Each name service entry requires a cell-relative name, which contains a directory path name and a leaf name.
directory pathname
Follows the cell name and indicates the hierarchical relationship of the entry to the cell root.
The directory pathname is the middle part of
the global name. The cell name is to the left of the directory path name, and the leaf name is to the right, as follows:
cell-name +
directory-pathname + leaf-name
The directory pathname contains the names of any subdirectories in the path; each subdirectory name begins with a
slash (/), as follows:
/sub-dir-a-name/sub-dir-b-name/sub-dir-c-name
Directory paths are created by name service
administrators. If an appropriate directory path does not exist, ask your name service administrator to extend an existing path or create a new path. In a directory path, the name of a subdirectory
should reflect its relationship to its parent directory (the directory that contains the subdirectory).
leaf name
Identifies the specific entry. The leaf name is the right-hand part of global name beginning with the rightmost slash.
In the following example, /.../C=US/O=uw/OU=MadCity is the cell name, /LandS/anthro is the directory path name, and /Cal_host_4 is the leaf name.
/.../C=US/O=uw/OU=MadCity/LandS/anthro/Cal_host_4,
If a name service entry is located at the cell root, the leaf name directly follows the cell name; for example, /.:/cell-profile.
Note that when the NSI is used with CDS, the cell-relative name is a CDS name.