Upgrade Active Directory skills for Windows 2008.

The article focuses on the Active Directory feature added to Microsoft Corp.'s Server 2008. Active Directory provides centralized and secure authorization, authentication and management of network users and groups, services such as messaging and other applications, and resources such as printers. It includes Active Directory Application Mode (Adam), a lightweight version which provides directory services for applications and uses the same application programming interface. The origins of Active Directory lie in NT Directory Services, first seen in 1996.