RFC 2293 (rfc2293) - Page 2 of 8
Representing Tables and Subtrees in the X
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
RFC 2293 Table and Subtrees in the X.500 March 1998 1 Representing Flat Tables Before considering specific function, a general purpose technique for representing tables in the directory is introduced. The schema for this is given in Figure 1. A table can be considered as an unordered set of key to (single or multiple) value mappings, where the key cannot be represented as a global name. There are four reasons why this may occur: 1. The object does not have a natural global name. 2. The object can only be named effectively in the context of being a key to a binding. In this case, the object will be given a natural global name by the table. 3. The object has a global name, and the table is being used to associate parameters with this object, in cases where they cannot be placed in the objects global entry. Reasons why they might not be so placed include: o The object does not have a directory entry o There is no authority to place the parameters in the global entry o The parameters are not global --- they only make sense in the context of the table. 4. It is desirable to group information together as a performance optimization, so that the block of information may be widely replicated. A table is represented as a single level subtree. The root of the subtree is an entry of object class Table. This is named with a common name descriptive of the table. The table will be located somewhere appropriate to its function. If a table is private to an MTA, it will be below the MTA's entry. If it is shared by MTA's in an organization, it will be located under the organization. The generic table entry contains only a description. All instances will be subclassed, and the subclass will define the naming attribute. Two subclasses are defined: Kille Standards Track
