We wrote not long ago about some of the bigger-picture items that set Quest apart within the Active Directory-Unix integration channel. But Quest’s position in that channel can’t be fully understood without an investigation of the individual products by which it seeks to distinguish itself. With that fact in mind, keep reading for a look at some of the specific tools that help Quest stand out …

At present, there are three main players in the market for providing seamless integration of Unix (i.e., Linux, OS X, Solaris, etc.) servers and workstations with Microsoft Active Directory: Likewise, Centrify and Quest. These companies, and the channel they occupy, have been the subject of frequent posts on this site. We hope that’s not a surprise, given the key role this market stands (we think) to play in the cloud, and which it is already playing for organizations whose platform diversity is ever-increasing.

Each of these vendors has its unique traits, and Quest’s most readily obvious one, as we wrote a couple weeks back, is the company’s broader focus. Unlike Centrify and Likewise, Quest sells a variety of different solutions that extend far beyond the narrow niche of AD integration for Unix platforms. This difference necessarily sets Quest apart in important ways from Likewise and Centrify.

The Smaller Picture

Beyond the factors that distinguish Quest from its competitors when viewed from the broad perspective of the channel as a whole, however, some of Quest’s individual products also help it to stand out.

Because Quest’s solutions for AD integration are designed as part of larger packages providing identity-management solutions as a whole, they can’t really be compared side-by-side comparison with alternatives from other vendors. Nonetheless, Quest does offer several tools that help to set it apart at the point where the cloud intersects AD integration, and which hold interesting potential for the future of identity management in the cloud. Consider in particular:

• OnDemand Recovery for Active Directory: Designed to simplify the process of backing up and recovering AD data, this tool is similar to Quest’s Recovery Manager for AD, but is intended to be cloud-centric.
• OnDemand Log Management: This log-management solution not only runs in the cloud, but is positioned to help solve a challenge that will only only grow greater in extent as more computing moves to the cloud (not to mention as auditing policies become ever-stricter and subject to more rigorous enforcement) — the maintenance of centralized logs easily accessible to IT personnel.
• Private Cloud Automation: AD integration isn’t the sole focus of this tool, but it’s inherently part of it. Speaking more broadly, the Private Cloud Automation product is an excellent example of why Quest’s identity-management solutions are integral to the cloud.

Taken together, these tools not only represent areas where Quest currently offers relatively unique solutions for users of public and private clouds, but also highlight some of the fascinating new applications which the rise of cloud computing holds for this channel — particularly where it meets AD. The sort of problems that these tools are designed to solve reflect issues that will be especially important to watch going forward, as the definition of the cloud — and identity management’s role in it — continue to evolve.

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