Passwords can be used to restrict access to resources, but with one password for each resource, passwords proliferate rapidly. If a password is changed, everyone who uses the resource must be notified. If each resource has a different password, password management becomes difficult. Domains Domains borrow concepts from both workgroups and directory services. Like workgroups, domains can be fairly informal and administered using a mix of central and local controls.
Domains can evolve fairly easily and be set up with less planning than typical for a directory.
Like a directory, a domain organizes the resources of several servers into one administrative structure. Users are given logon privileges to a domain rather than to each individual server. Because a domain controls the resources of several servers, it is easier to administer than a network with many stand-alone servers. Servers within the domain advertise their services to users. Users who log in to a domain gain access to all resources in the domain for which they have been granted access.