Re: Semantics of LDAP Modify DN operation

[Ed Reed <ed_reed@novell.com>]

The only reasonable answer is #1...you changed the parent RDN
of all the entries subordinate to it...so all their DNs are changed.

Losing entries, creating orphans because parents changed their
names, or deleting entries in such cases are all irrational
resposes to a common, every day behavior.

Ask yourself this - what happens when you rename a directory
in a file service...what happens to the names of all the files
subordinate to the changed directory name?

Their relative pathnames, below the changed name, remain
the same.

Their absolute pathnames now traverse through the new
directory name.

Note that if your file system has been storing the full path
name by which to refer to the files, such stored absolute
file names will face a tough decision about how the
stored names will be modified...which is why most file
systems would not do such a thing....

;-)

Ed

============================
Ed Reed, Technologist
Novell Product Management
+1 801 861 3320

>>> Nick Zhang <nzhang@best.com> 10/05/99 02:11PM >>>
What is the exact semantics of Modify DN operation?
Example, assume we have entry for the organization
named "foo", "o=foo, c=US", we do 
	ldapmodrdn "o=foo, c=US" "o=bar"
Then what is the consequence of the operation--what happened
to all the children of the "o=foo,c=US"?

I can see 4 possibilities:
1) all got renamed to "cn=employee, o=bar, c=US"
2) all become orphans--don't know who the parent is, but
may not may not still be searchable
3) all become grandparent's childrent
4) all got removed

I know in LDAPv3 this has been made clear with subtree renaming.
But let's say the Modify DN request does not have the optional
newSuperior field--therefore, it's LDAPv2, then what should
we interpret the consequence. There must have been discussions
about this when LDAPv3 came up.

Thanks

--Nick


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