Active Directory for .NET - time to evaluate?
ZDNet | at | by Mike
With Microsoft about to issue a second release candidate of its upcoming Windows .Net Server 2003, many companies have begun evaluating the new platform in earnest. The new Internet Information Server 6.0 has a redesigned architecture that offers better performance and the ability to deploy more secure and reliable applications. For companies that want to build an n-tier application design, Microsoft will even offer a lightweight "Web server" version of .Net Server designed to be deployed as the presentation-layer machines for a data center.
.Net Server will also be the first Microsoft OS system to ship with the .Net runtime (version 1.1) fully integrated. This integration includes new management tools and integration with other key features of the OS, like Active Directory (AD). The packaging of the .Net runtime and application services (IIS, transaction management, etc.) with the core network OS means that buying .Net Server is now the functional equivalent of purchasing a Unix OS and a third-party application server to manage application objects.