Extends the
javax.naming package to provide functionality
for accessing directory services.
This package defines the directory operations of the Java Naming and
Directory InterfaceTM (JNDI).
JNDI provides naming and directory functionality to applications
written in the Java programming language. It is designed to be
independent of any specific naming or directory service
implementation. Thus a variety of services--new, emerging, and
already deployed ones--can be accessed in a common way.
This package allows applications to retrieve and update attributes
associated with objects stored in a directory, and to search for
objects using specified attributes.
The Directory Context
The
DirContext
interface represents a
directory context.
It defines methods for examining and updating attributes associated with a
directory object, or
directory entry as it is sometimes
called.
You use getAttributes() to retrieve the attributes
associated with a directory object (for which you supply the name).
Attributes are modified using modifyAttributes().
You can add, replace, or remove attributes and/or attribute values
using this operation.
DirContext also behaves as a naming context
by extending the Context interface in the javax.naming package.
This means that any directory object can also provide
a naming context.
For example, the directory object for a person might contain
the attributes of that person, and at the same time provide
a context for naming objects relative to that person
such as his printers and home directory.
Searches
DirContext contains methods for
performing content-based searching of the directory.
In the simplest and most common form of usage, the application
specifies a set of attributes--possibly with specific
values--to match, and submits this attribute set, to the
search() method.
There are other overloaded forms of
search()
that support more sophisticated
search filters.
Package Specification
The JNDI API Specification and related documents can be found in the
JNDI documentation.