The next generation Windows NT Directory Services support the Universal Naming Convention used in Windows NT Server-based networks to refer to shared volumes, printers, and files. A user can refer to a shared file published in next generation Windows NT Directory Services by a UNC name, for example:
\\Myco.Com\division.product.Sys.SomeVolume\XLSheets\Budget.XLS
Using Open Standards for Cross-Platform Directory Services
The next generation Windows NT Directory Services have APIs integrated into their code to allow communication with other directories. As noted earlier in this document, next generation Windows NT Directory can exchange information with any application or directory equipped with LDAP or other key X.500 protocols including DAP, DSP, and DISP.
The next generation Windows NT Directory Services provide the interoperability network administrators need to more efficiently manage their resources during the migration to the ideal next generation system. The ability of next generation Windows NT Directory Services to subsume and manage other directories, provides a unification that can greatly reduce the number of directories and name spaces with which network administrators—and users—must contend.
Combining the Best of DNS and X.500
The next generation Windows NT Directory Services combine the best of DNS as a locator service with the best of X.500 while avoiding the failings of both while advancing Internet standards. The details of this implementation will be discussed in the following section.