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I work in a Windows environment where I have to login to a Windows domain at the login dialog, so that I can authenticate myself to the network.

I want to use Linux on my machine but I do not know how to can I login to Windows domain using the Linux machine. I have openSuse 11.4 on my desktop.

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You know that you generally don't need to join the domain to access resources? You can keep your system separate and usually you can still access resources. What resources are you trying to access? Some things you can get really easy. Other things will require a lot of work. – Zoredache Aug 23 '11 at 20:25
Ive done this in the past at a previous job on Solaris machines. Its not the hard to set up, but there are a lot of hurdles. We had to work out many kinks before it worked right. Incosistencies on username and password requirements, setting up proper keytabs, etc... doable, but annoying. – Keltari Aug 23 '11 at 21:04

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While it is possible to set up a Linux install to load settings and mounts from an Active Directory-like LDAP source and samba shares, it's a rather enterprisey setup that is not one-click-simple and almost always requires some customization on the side of the AD controller to provide linux-specific information. You would really need your IT department's help with this, and I suspect in a Windows-only shop they'd be unwilling.

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The reason why the IT department doesn't want to help because it is a pain in the rear, with no guarantees that the next server update will break the configuration . . . – surfasb Aug 23 '11 at 21:32
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It can be done with winbind, but is not an easy setup. Suse may have better support for this, but I'm not sure.

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There is a free package available that makes connecting a Linux client to a Windows Domain for authentication really simple - it's called Centrify. It takes about 2 mins to set up and (for me anyway) 'just works'.

Good have a look:

http://www.centrify.com/express/free-active-directory-tools-for-linux-mac.asp?r=menu-nav

Centrify Express is a comprehensive suite of free Active Directory-based integration solutions for authentication, single sign-on, remote access, file-sharing, monitoring The #1 Choice for Active Directory Integration and cloud security for cross-platform systems. It is the quickest and most proven solution for integrating UNIX, Linux and Mac systems with Windows, and delivers more functionality and more to upgrade to when compared to other free offerings.

Setup info here (for Ubuntu):

http://www.centrify.com/blogs/tomkemp/join_ubuntu_to_active_directory_domain.asp

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