Openldap

App in the BluixApps catalog

What it is

OpenLDAP is the incumbent open-source LDAP server — directory services for authentication, user management, address books, configuration storage. Long-running OSS project (>25 years), standard component in Unix-based infrastructure for centralized identity.

For traditional enterprise IT needing centralized directory services (still many do), OpenLDAP is the canonical choice.

What it's for

  • Centralized authentication — single user database for many apps
  • Active Directory alternative — on-prem directory without Microsoft
  • Address book — global contact directory
  • Group management — user groups for app permissions
  • Configuration directory — centralized config storage

Who it's for

  • Enterprise IT running centralized authentication
  • Unix shops with traditional directory infrastructure
  • Universities managing student / staff accounts
  • Government / public sector under data sovereignty
  • Legacy app environments with LDAP-only integration

Why teams pick OpenLDAP over alternatives

  • OpenLDAP Public License — fully open
  • Mature — production-deployed for 25+ years
  • Standards-compliant — RFC-compliant LDAP v3
  • Lightweight — runs on minimal hardware
  • Universal client support — every language has LDAP client
  • Active development — community + commercial maintenance

Integrations

  • LDAP clients — Linux PAM, Windows AD integration, every language SDK
  • Application LDAP — virtually any app supports LDAP auth
  • Replication — multi-master + delta sync for HA
  • Backup — slapcat for full backup, slapadd for restore
  • Web UI — phpLDAPadmin / LDAP Account Manager for management
  • Sync — sync with AD via custom scripts or commercial tools
  • API — LDAP itself is the API

Notable users & community

  • Used by Apache Software Foundation, Internet2, universities globally
  • Backed by Symas (sustainable commercial OpenLDAP company)
  • Long-running OSS project
  • Active mailing list
  • Standard tool in Unix IT

Tips & operations

  • Schema design upfront — changing schema with data = pain
  • Replication setup — multi-master for HA, master-slave simpler
  • Backup is slapcat output — flat-file LDIF; trivial to backup
  • TLS for client connections — never allow plaintext LDAP
  • ACL discipline — define access policies carefully
  • Performance tuning — index attributes used in searches

What we ship in BluixApps

  • Docker compose: OpenLDAP + phpLDAPadmin
  • Pinned osixia/openldap:1.5 (release-tagged)
  • HTTPS via Let's Encrypt for admin UI
  • Admin DN + password via env config
  • TLS-enabled for client connections
  • Persistent volumes for data + certs
  • Backup hook covers data (LDIF dump)
Read this app's deep dive on bluix.app ↗

Get this app — pick a BluixApps plan

Same catalog. Scaling tenant isolation, white-label and support tier.

TierTenantsCatalogSupportWhite-labelMonthly
Stacks119 curated stacksStandard$19/moDetailDeploy
Starter10Full catalogStandard+$15–25/mo$49/moDetailDeploy
Pro25Full catalogPriority bugfix+$15–25/mo$149/moDetailDeploy
Growth100Full catalogPriority bugfix+$15–25/mo$349/moDetailDeploy
Scale500Full catalog7-day window+$15–25/mo$799/moDetailDeploy
EnterpriseUnlimitedFull catalogPriority 7-dayBundled$1,499/moDetailDeploy

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