Easily Update AD Attributes

Organizations that store user information in Active Directory (AD) often run into problems when they need to update information for a large group of people. For example, when an entire division relocates, you need to update those employees' address and telephone information in AD. The most common methods for making such updates are to use Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) Data Interchange Format (LDIF) files in conjunction with ldifde.exe or to create custom scripts that use Active Directory Service Interfaces (ADSI). Creating LDIF files to perform such updates isn't simple, though, because LDIF file generation can require many string manipulations. Creating custom ADSI scripts gives you more control over how to perform the updates—you can add, delete, or update objects and attributes in any way you see fit (e.g., modify a telephone number's format, change characters from lowercase to uppercase)—but you must find a way to retrieve updated information and read it into the scripts. . . .