Custom attributes
The Active Directory schema accepts custom attributes. Based on business requirements, sometimes organizations will have to introduce custom attributes to object classes. Most of the time, it is related to application integration requirements with Active Directory. Some applications have their own way of handling their user accounts and privileges. These applications can also have their own attributes defined by their database systems to store data. Sometimes, these application attributes may not match the attributes on Active Directory.
Some time ago, I was helping a pharmaceutical company on an Active Directory project. The customer already had an Active Directory environment in place. They were also maintaining an HR system that was not integrated with Active Directory. They had a new requirement for an employee collaboration application, which required data to be input in a specific way. It had defined fields in the database and we needed to match the data...
