Add and Configure an LDAP Server#

Add an LDAP Server#

This procedure adds and configures a LDAP server for integration with Automate.

Note

When integrating with a eDirectory LDAP server, OpenLDAP configuration options are followed, except for the primary key configuration options.

  1. Log in as Provider, Reseller, or Customer administrator.

  2. Set the hierarchy node to the node where you want to sync in users from LDAP to Automate.

  3. Go to (default menus) LDAP Management > LDAP Server.

  4. Click Add.

  5. Configure the LDAP server. See LDAP Server Configuration for details.

    • Fill out the fields on the Base tab/panel.

    • Optionally, on the Sync List tab/panel, if you choose LDAP sync list option Create sync list from template, you can choose a LDAP sync list template (based on the server type) - either of these:

      • Ldap Sync List Microsoft Active Directory

      • Ldap Sync List Open Ldap

      You can choose a template when adding the LDAP server, or update your choice after saving. If you don’t choose a template, LDAP sync is not affected by this list. See the tab description, and:

  6. Click Save.

  7. Test the connection to the LDAP server.

    If the authentication credentials or search base DN are invalid, the system displays an error, for example:

    Error encountered while processing your request

    caught exception: [Helper] validation failed; Invalid search base db.

LDAP Server Configuration#

This topic is a field reference guide for the fields on the LDAP Server when adding or updating an LDAP server.

You can select the following tabs on the LDAP Server page:

Note

Use the toolbar tab/panel button to toggle between displaying these fields in tabs or panels.

  • Base

  • Sync List

Base Tab / Panel#

Field

Description

Description

Defaults to the current hierarchy level.

Host Name *

Mandatory. Hostname or IP address of the LDAP server.

Port

Port number for LDAP traffic. Defaults to 389.

User DN *

Mandatory. The User Distinguished Name of an admin user that has access rights to the Base DN on the LDAP server.

Examples:

Admin Password *

Mandatory. Admin password associated with the user.

Search Base DN *

Mandatory. Base Distinguished Name for LDAP search. This should be a container or directory on the LDAP server where the LDAP users exist, such as an Organization Unit (OU). For example, to search within an OU called CUS01 under a domain called GCLAB.COM, the Search Base DN would be OU=CUS01,DC=GCLAB,DC=COM.

Note that the search will traverse the directory tree from this point down and will include any sub OU’s which have been added within the OU.

Search Filter

An RFC 2254 conformant string used to restrict the results returned by list operations on the LDAP server.

Server Type *

Either Microsoft Active Directory or OpenLDAP. For AD LDS (ADAM), choose Microsoft Active Directory.

AD Sync Mode *

Defaults to Direct.

Enable Write Operations

This check box is only shown for Microsoft Active Directory servers (Server Type is Microsoft Active Directory) when Encryption Method is “Use SSL Encryption (ldaps://)” (port is 636). When enabled, Automate user management allows for the management of users on the LDAP server (add, modify, delete).

Field

Description

CUCM LDAP Directory Name

Optional. The name of the LDAP Directory configured on CUCM that we want this user to be considered synced from. The LDAP Directory must be configured on CUCM already. While this parameter is optional, note the following when this parameter is not set:

  • In a top-down scenario, users are added to CUCM as Local Users

  • In a bottom-up sync scenario, users won’t be able to log on to Automate

Encryption Method

Choose between No Encryption, Use SSL Encryption (ldaps://), or Use StartTLS Extension.

  • No Encryption - default port for LDAP is port 389

  • Use SSL Encryption (ldaps://)a - uses port 636 and establishes TLS/SSL upon connecting with a client.

  • Use StartTLS Extension - to transition to a TLS connection after connecting on port 389

Server Root Certificate

If Trust All is unchecked, the LDAP server’s SSL certificate is validated against this root certificate. If no Server Root Certificate is specified, validation is done against any existing trusted CA certificates. Use this option for custom root certificates in .pem format. See “SSO Certificate Management” for more information.

Trust All

Defines whether to disable certificate validation.

Primary Key Attribute

The attribute value used to uniquely identify and search for records on an LDAP server. For example, uid is the attribute when using a 389-Directory Server and entryUUID when using an OpenLDAP server. The attribute must be unique, should not change over time and should not be location specific. If no attribute is entered, entryUUID is used for an OpenLDAP server and ObjectGUID if the LDAP server is Microsoft Active Directory.

Note

From v21.4-PB5, Automate introduced support for syncs from an eDirectory LDAP server configured as an OpenLDAP server type, and allows the use of an OctetString-formatted GUID primary key (pk) instead of the entryUUID attribute.

Authentication Scope

Hierarchical scope this server applies to: Local authentication or Full tree authentication. [1]

User sync type

Choose the type of users that can authenticate against this server - options are:

  • All users - all users can authenticate against this server

  • Synced users only (default) - only users synced in from LDAP can authenticate against this server

Authentication enabled

Defines whether the server is available for authentication. Default is True.

Search Filter examples:

  • (telephoneNumber=919*): all telephone numbers starting with 919

  • ((&(OfficeLocations=RTP)(|(department=Engineering)(department=Marketing))): office is located in RTP and department is either Engineering or Marketing

  • (&(MemberOf=cn=Admin,ou=users,dc=foo,dc=com)(!(c=US))): all Admins except those in the U.S.

User lookup for LDAP authentication is restricted to the device/ldap model specified in the Authentication Attribute: Model Type. For example, if this attribute was device/ldap/user, the LDAP user authentication is restricted to (objectClass=user).

Related Topics

Sync List Tab / Panel#

A sync list improves performance, and limits sync attributes to those relevant to your scenario.

On this tab you can choose a LDAP sync list option, when adding a new LDAP server or when updating an existing LDAP server (one that was added prior to release 19.3.4).

Important

The following attributes are always synced in, regardless of the sync list option you choose:

  • sAMAccountName

  • userPrincipalName

  • mail

  • cn

  • uid

  • description

The table describes the LDAP sync list options you can choose on this tab:

LDAP Sync List Option

Description

No sync list - all fields will be synced

LDAP sync is not driven by a LDAP sync list. All fields are imported (as they were before release 19.3.4).

Create sync list manually

The fields to sync can be added or modified manually. For list override precedence and other considerations, see LDAP Sync Lists.

Create sync list from template

Displays an additional field on the tab (LDAP Sync List Template) and allows you to choose a sync list from a predefined configuration template (CFT).

Automate provides default Sync List CFTs for the following:

  • Microsoft AD servers

  • OpenLDAP servers

These CFTs contain LDAP attributes that are typically required to be synced with LDAP. Once you’ve applied the template, or if a template is not used, a sync list is visible and configurable directly on a saved LDAP server’s Sync List tab. See LDAP Sync Lists.