PLANNING
Before you install Domino servers, create a diagram of your company and use the diagram to plan a meaningful name scheme. Then create certifier IDs to implement the name scheme and ensure a secure system.
A hierarchical name scheme uses a tree structure that reflects the actual structure of a company. At the top of the tree is the organization name, which is usually the company name. Below the organization name are organizational units, which you create to suit the structure of the company; you can organize the structure geographically, departmentally, or both.
A hierarchical name reflects a user's or server's place in the hierarchy and controls whether users and servers in different organizations and organizational units can communicate with each another. A hierarchical name may include these components:
Julia Herlihy/Sales/East/Renovations/US
Typically a name is entered and displayed in this abbreviated format, but it is stored internally in canonical format, which contains the name and its associated components, as shown below:
CN=Julia Herlihy/OU=Sales/OU=East/O=Renovations/C=US
Note: You can use hierarchical naming with wildcards as a way to isolate a group of servers that need to connect to a given Domino server in order to route mail.
The fictional Renovations company created this diagram for their servers and users:
Looking at the Renovations diagram, you can see where they located their servers in the tree. Renovations decided to split the company geographically at the first level and create certifier IDs for the East and West organizational units. At the next level down, Renovations made its division according to department.
Related concepts Certifier IDs and certificates Planning a mail routing topology
Related tasks Roadmap for deploying Domino servers