Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) is an industry standard access method to directory services. Each instance of the database server will publish its existence and provide the protocol communication information in the LDAP directory. When a client connects to the database server, the communication information for the server can be retrieved from the LDAP directory. Each client is no longer required to store the server connection information by cataloging a node entry locally on each machine. Instead, when a database is created, the database publishes its existence using the LDAP directory. Client applications search the LDAP directory for the database location and the information required to connect to the database.
A caching mechanism exists so that the client only searches the LDAP directory once. Once the information is retrieved, it is stored or cached on the local machine. Subsequent access to the same information is through the cached information and not through another search using the LDAP directory.