Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Samba VS 389 Directory Server

Compare Samba VS 389 Directory Server and see what are their differences

Samba logo Samba

Samba serves as an open source alternative to the traditional domain controller offered by Microsoft.

389 Directory Server logo 389 Directory Server

Enterprise-class open source Linux LDAP server.
  • Samba Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-09-29
  • 389 Directory Server Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-20

Samba features and specs

  • Cross-Platform Compatibility
    Samba allows file and print sharing between computers running Windows and Unix-like systems such as Linux, enhancing interoperability across different platforms.
  • Active Directory Support
    Samba provides Active Directory support, enabling Linux servers to seamlessly join and participate in Windows network domains, including authentication and directory services.
  • Open Source
    Being open source, Samba is cost-effective and provides the flexibility to modify and utilize the software according to organizational needs, with a supportive user and developer community.
  • Wide Adoption
    Samba is widely adopted and trusted in enterprise environments for providing reliable file and print services across various operating systems.
  • Comprehensive Documentation
    Samba has extensive documentation and community-contributed resources that help users effectively set up and troubleshoot issues.

Possible disadvantages of Samba

  • Complex Configuration
    Samba configuration can be complex and may require a thorough understanding of both Windows and Linux networking concepts to set up and maintain correctly.
  • Performance Overhead
    Due to protocol translation between different systems, there may be performance overheads in certain environments, impacting speed and efficiency.
  • Security Risks
    As with any network service, misconfiguration or lack of updates can expose Samba to security vulnerabilities, requiring careful management and regular updates.
  • Resource Intensive
    Running Samba services can be resource-intensive, requiring sufficient hardware resources to maintain optimal performance, especially in larger network environments.
  • Occasional Compatibility Issues
    While Samba strives for compatibility, there may occasionally be issues with newer Windows features or complex Active Directory environments.

389 Directory Server features and specs

  • Open Source
    389 Directory Server is open source, providing transparency and community-driven development. This allows for more extensive peer review and potentially faster iteration.
  • Multiplatform Support
    The server runs on multiple platforms, including Linux distributions such as CentOS, Fedora, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux, increasing its versatility across different environments.
  • Scalability
    389 Directory Server is designed to handle large directories with millions of entries, making it suitable for enterprise-level deployments.
  • Rich Feature Set
    It offers a comprehensive set of features including replication, SSL/TLS encryption, and a powerful access control mechanism, which are crucial for robust directory management.
  • Active Community and Support
    An active community and commercial support options are available, providing resources for troubleshooting and improving the software.
  • Role-Based Access Control
    Provides detailed access management through role-based access control, improving security and flexibility in user management.

Possible disadvantages of 389 Directory Server

  • Complex Setup
    Initial setup and configuration can be complex and time-consuming, requiring a good understanding of directory services.
  • Limited Windows Integration
    Integration with Windows environments may not be as seamless compared to solutions specifically designed for Windows, such as Active Directory.
  • User Interface
    The administrative user interface may not be as intuitive or mature as some commercial alternatives, potentially increasing the learning curve for new administrators.
  • Documentation Quality
    While documentation exists, it might not always be comprehensive or up-to-date, which can pose challenges for deployment and troubleshooting.
  • Resource Intensive
    The server can be resource-intensive, requiring substantial system resources for high-performance situations, which may be a concern for larger deployments.

Samba videos

Samba OG 3 Month Review | Uncomfortable?

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  • Review - Adidas Samba Classic Indoor - Unboxing + On Feet

389 Directory Server videos

Central Authentication with 389 Directory Server - I

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Samba and 389 Directory Server)
Cloud Computing
65 65%
35% 35
Identity And Access Management
Identity Provider
53 53%
47% 47
Cloud Storage
73 73%
27% 27

User comments

Share your experience with using Samba and 389 Directory Server. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Samba seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 1 time since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Samba mentions (1)

  • Samba 4.16 broken?
    Well, it's the first Samba release in the ports since 4.13, and it isn't marked as broken. I'm not sure why you'd look on the samba.org site to see if the FreeBSD port has defects, or why you'd give me a link link to the Samba wiki for 4.13 when I'm very clearly asking about 4.16. Source: over 2 years ago

389 Directory Server mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of 389 Directory Server yet. Tracking of 389 Directory Server recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Samba and 389 Directory Server, you can also consider the following products

FreeIPA - FreeIPA is an integrated security information management solution combining Linux (Fedora), 389...

OpenLDAP - OpenLDAP Software is an open source implementation of the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol.

Zentyal - Linux directory, domain, mail, gateway and infrastructure server for SMBs.

Microsoft Active Directory - Active Directory is a special-purpose database \ 8212; it is not a registry replacement.

Univention Corporate Server - Univention Corporate Server UCS with Active Directory functions and App Center is the cost-efficient and popular successor to Microsoft's server solutions.

ApacheDS - ApacheDS™ is an extensible and embeddable directory server entirely written in Java, which has been...