We're pleased to announce version 0.0.3 of Net::LDAP, the first
pure-Ruby LDAP library. Net::LDAP intends to be a feature-complete
LDAP client which can access as much as possible of the functionality
of the most-used LDAP server implementations. This library does
not wrap any existing native-code LDAP libraries, creates no
Ruby extensions, and has no dependencies external to Ruby.

Version 0.0.3 adds support for encrypted communications to LDAP servers.
There is a new optional parameter for Net::LDAP#new and Net::LDAP#open
that allows you to specify encryption characteristics. Here's a quick
example:

    require 'net/ldap'
    ldap = Net::LDAP.new(
      :host => "an_ip_address",
      :port => 636,
      :auth => {:method => :simple, :username => "mickey", :password => "mouse" },
      :encryption => {:method => :simple_tls}
    )
    ldap.bind or raise "bind failed"
    ldap.search( ... )
    # etc, etc.

This release supports simple TLS encryption with no client or server
validation. Future versions will add support for the STARTTLS control,
and for certificate validation. Additional parameters will appear to
support these options.

Net::LDAP encryption requires Ruby's openssl library. We're not
quite sure what happens when this library is present but the underlying
OpenSSL libraries are missing or not configured appropriately,
especially on back versions of Ruby. If anyone encounters problems
using encryption in Net::LDAP, please let us know and give us the
details of your platform and Ruby build info.

Thanks to Garett Shulman for helping to test the new code.

If anyone wants to contribute suggestions, insights or (especially)
code, please email me at garbagecat10 .. .. gmail.com.

= What is Net::LDAP for Ruby?
This library provides a pure-Ruby implementation of an LDAP client.
It can be used to access any server which implements the LDAP protocol.

Net::LDAP is intended to provide full LDAP functionality while hiding
the more arcane aspects of the LDAP protocol itself, so as to make the
programming interface as Ruby-like as possible.

In particular, this means that there is no direct dependence on the
structure of the various "traditional" LDAP clients. This is a ground-up
rethinking of the LDAP API.

Net::LDAP is based on RFC-2251, which specifies the Lightweight Directory
Access Protocol, as amended and extended by subsequent RFCs and by the more
widely-used directory implementations.

Homepage::  http://rubyforge.org/projects/net-ldap/
Download::  http://rubyforge.org/frs/?group_id=143
Copyright:: 2006 by Francis Cianfrocca

== LICENCE NOTES
Please read the file LICENCE for licensing restrictions on this library. In
the simplest terms, this library is available under the same terms as Ruby
itself.

== Requirements and Installation
Net::LDAP requires Ruby 1.8.2 or better.

Net::LDAP can be installed with:

 % ruby setup.rb

Alternatively, you can use the RubyGems version of Net::LDAP available
as ruby-net-ldap-0.0.2.gem from the usual sources.

== Whet your appetite:
    require 'net/ldap'
    
    ldap = Net::LDAP.new :host => server_ip_address,
         :port => 389,
         :auth => {
               :method => :simple,
               :username => "cn=manager,dc=example,dc=com",
               :password => "opensesame"
         }
  
    filter = Net::LDAP::Filter.eq( "cn", "George*" )
    treebase = "dc=example,dc=com"
    
    ldap.search( :base => treebase, :filter => filter ) do |entry|
      puts "DN: #{entry.dn}"
      entry.each do |attribute, values|
        puts "   #{attribute}:"
        values.each do |value|
          puts "      --->#{value}"
        end
      end
    end
    
    p ldap.get_operation_result

== Net::LDAP 0.0.2: May 3, 2006
* Fixed malformation in distro tarball and gem.
* Improved documentation.
* Supported "paged search control."