Configuration Guide › Introduction to Identity Manager Environments › Identity Manager Environment Components

Identity Manager Environment Components

An Identity Manager Environment is a view of a management namespace that lets Identity Manager administrators manage objects such as users, groups, and organizations, with a set of associated roles and tasks. The Identity Manager Environment controls the management and graphical presentation of a directory.

A single user store may be associated with multiple Identity Manager Environments to define different views of the directory. However, an Identity Manager Environment is associated with only one user store.

Identity Manager environments may contain the following elements:

Directory

Describes a user store to Identity Manager. It includes the following:

• A pointer to a user store, which stores managed objects such as users, groups, and organizations.
• Metadata that describes how managed objects are stored in the directory and represented in CA Identity Manager.

Provisioning Directory (optional)

Stores information required by the Provisioning Server to manage additional accounts in managed endpoints. Only one Provisioning Directory can be associated with an Environment.

Note: For more information about the Provisioning Server or the Provisioning Directory, see the Installation Guide.

User Console

Enables Identity Manager administrators to perform tasks in an Identity Manager Environment.

Task and role definitions

Determine user privileges in CA Identity Manager and other applications. These task and role definitions are initially available in the Identity Manager Environment where they can be assigned to users.

You can customize the default roles and tasks using the User Console.

Self-service

Lets users create and maintain their own accounts for accessing resources, such as a customer web site. It also lets users request a temporary password if they forget their current password.

Workflow definitions

CA Identity Manager includes default workflow definitions that automate approval and notification tasks associated with user management tasks, such as creating user profiles or assigning users to roles or groups. You can modify the default workflow processes in CA Identity Manager to support each organization's requirements.

Skins

Determine the appearance of the Identity Manager user interface.

Custom features

You can extend CA Identity Manager to suit your company’s requirements using the Identity Manager APIs. See the Programming Guide for Java.

Each Identity Manager environment requires one or more system managers to customize the initial roles and tasks using the User Console. Once a system manager creates the initial roles and tasks, that manager can grant administrative privileges to users in that environment. These users become administrators who manage users, groups, and organizations. See the Administration Guide.