Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Unleashed (R2 Edition)

In the past, Microsoft had a bad reputation for giving the impression that its technologies would be the only ones deployed at organizations. The toolsets available to co-exist in cross-platform environments were often weak and were provided mostly as a direct means to migrate from those environments to Microsoft environments. The introduction of Windows Server 2003, however, coincides with the maturation of several new co-existence technologies from Microsoft that allow for tight integration of Microsoft technologies with Unix, Novell, Oracle, and many other environments.

This chapter focuses on three major products: Services for Unix (SFU) 3.5, Services for NetWare (SFNW) 5.03, Microsoft Identity Integration Server (MIIS) 2003, and Active Directory Federation Services. Each one of these products works in combination with Windows Server 2003 technologies to provide for the transparent exchange of information between non-Microsoft and Microsoft environments.

This chapter introduces each environment and describes the various functionality available in each product. In addition, this chapter focuses on the specific integration issues that each product brings to Windows Server 2003 and provides for a high-level understanding of the ways each product can be used to enhance a cross-platform environment.