Directory Services

Dynamically Linked Auxiliary Classes

A dynamically linked auxiliary class is one that is attached to an individual object, rather than to an object class. Dynamic linking enables you to store additional attributes with an individual object without the forest-wide impact of extending the schema definition for an entire class. For example, an enterprise could use dynamic linking to attach a sales-specific auxiliary class to the user objects of its sales people, and other department-specific auxiliary classes to the user objects of employees in other departments.

Dynamic linking is simple: add the name of the auxiliary class to the values of an object's objectClass property. If the auxiliary class has any mandatory attributes (mustHave or systemMustHave), you must set them at the same time. For sample code, see Adding an Auxiliary Class to an Object Instance.

To remove a dynamically linked auxiliary class, clear the values of all attributes from the auxiliary class, and then remove the name of the auxiliary class from the objectClass attribute of the object.

If you dynamically add an auxiliary class that is a subclass of another auxiliary class, both auxiliary classes are added to the target object. However, removing the child auxiliary class does not remove its parent; each class must be explicitly removed.