Overloading LDAP

Question

In my college there's an LDAP server managed by the staff. We can use this LDAP server from our machines, but cannot modify attributes (eg: user login shell).

We'd like to modify these attributes, so we were thinking of setting up an LDAP server working as a proxy for the other one: we would set any attribute we need on our LDAP server, and then use the one offered by the staff for authentication.

Is there any way to do this?

Answer 1

The correct answer is replication. Arrange for the administrators of the LDAP server to have its contents replicated to your local LDAP server. They might refuse, since the database could diverge if the replication is not multi-master or bi-directional. Failing this, configure your own LDAP server and populate with data as required and configure your LDAP clients to use the new server.

Answer 2

Yes, all LDAP servers offer proxy functions or can load LDIF files.

Note1 Do you want to overload (like with weight) or overlay (like with edited content)? What sort of LDAP service runs centrally?

Note2 Connect to central LDAP with softerra LDAP viewer. It detects if it is Sun/Netscape or Lotus Domino or Ad etc... Have you asked them and they refused to help?