Probably the most obvious benefit in migrating to a common directory is a reduction in the cost of managing that data. This does not just mean the administrative processes of daily cleanups, backups and maintenance. This includes migration to common network and service management tools, billing applications and CRM packages, while necessary legacy systems can remain in place for as long as is necessary. To maximize the benefits of the directory technology, it is also important that these applications are able to take advantage of that approach. In addition, a carrier environment clearly demands a solution that is both scalable and reliable.
Directories provide both capabilities.
Existing directory deployments of more than 10 million records are not uncommon, and are achieved by the use of multithreaded architectures, multiprocessor platforms and disk arrays. However, in a telecommunications environment it is often more desirable to distribute processing to suit the applications, such that the primary location of the information is as close as possible to the real-time client. New Services, Revenues To really leverage the use of directories it is necessary to look more toward the introduction of new-generation services, and on to the second challenge of increasing the revenue potential of the existing infrastructure. Every one of these services can be characterized by a set of objects and attributes that can be stored in the directory. These attributes can be used to define service information from access bandwidth and static IP address to more complex QoS and subscription workflow.