Patent ID: 8793355

Claim:
A method for directory data resolution comprising: receiving data identifying one or more groups of interest of a directory server; traversing, using at least one computer processor, one or more directory entries contained in hierarchical directory data, the traversal starting at a directory entry corresponding to a current group of interest; reading a first directory entry to identify a member contained in the first directory entry; adding, in the event a member is contained in the first directory entry, the current group of interest to a mapping for the member; determining whether the first directory entry contains a further directory entry; reading, in the event a further directory entry is contained in the first directory entry, the further directory entry to determine whether the current group of interest is to be added to a mapping for another member and whether additional hierarchical directory data levels are to be traversed for the current group of interest; and expiring a directory entry of the one or more directory entries in cache based on an expiration time determined by a separate random value assigned to each of the one or more directory entries, the random value used to distribute expiration times for the cached one or more directory entries to reduce a load required to refresh expired directory entries in cache at a point in time, wherein the expiration time determined by the separate random value is within a specified range of permissible expiration times.