DOCUMENT:Q103738  30-AUG-1993  [W_NT]
TITLE   :Discussion of DCE CDS and RPC NSI
PRODUCT :Windows NT
PROD/VER:3.10
OPER/SYS:WINDOWS
KEYWORDS:

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The information in this article applies to:
 
 - Microsoft Windows NT operating system, version 3.1
 - Microsoft Windows NT Advanced Server, version 3.1
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The Microsoft RPC (remote procedure call) runtime library provides a
set of name service APIs (all prefixed by "RpcNs") to enable RPC
applications to access name service information. RPC servers can
export names and associated binding information to a name service
database through these APIs. And, using the same set of APIs, RPC
clients can import server binding information.
 
The RPC library implements these APIs by accessing a name service
database through the RPC runtime interface called the NSI (name
service interface). This interface is used to access information
stored by various name service providers, such as the RPC Locator or
the DCE Cell Directory Service (CDS) service.
 
On Windows NT systems, the default RPC name service provider is the
RPC Locator. The RPC Locator maintains a loosely consistent database
that is strictly cached and volatile. An administrator can select an
alternative RPC name service provider through from Control Panel in
the Network section. (DCE CDS is the only alternative supported in
Windows NT version 3.1.)
 
Limitations
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1. If the DCE CDS is configured as the RPC name service provider, a
   Windows NT server can export its binding information to the CDS,
   and a Windows NT client can access server binding information
   stored in the CDS. However, a DCE server has no way of exporting
   its binding information to the RPC Locator, nor can a DCE client
   access the Windows NT Locator in order to acquire server
   information.
 
2. The Windows NT 3.1 RPC Locator does not support groups, that is,
   the group APIs (prefixed by "RpcNsGroup").
 
For additional information, see the Win32 SDK "RPC Programmer's Guide
and Reference."
 
Additional reference words: 3.10
KBCategory:
KBSubCategory: NETSRV

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