Remote Active Directory mode

When GFI MailEssentials is installed in Remote Active Directory mode, configure the Remote Active Directory in use and connection settings from the Switchboard.

IMPORTANT

Use caution when changing Remote Active Directory settings. The newly retrieved user list may be different from existing user list (for example, when connecting to a different domain). In this case existing configurations may fail due to missing users.

To configure the Remote Active Directory connection:

  1. Launch the GFI MailEssentials Switchboard from Start > Programs > GFI MailEssentials > Switchboard.

GFI MailEssentials Switchboard - Remote Active Directory settings

  1. Go to the Remote Directory tab and configure:
Option Description
Host Specify the host name of the remote Active Directory server.
Port

Key in the LDAP port to use to retrieve the list of users from Active Directory. By default LDAP uses port 389.

To connect using a secure connection, select Use SSL, which by default uses port 636. An SSL certificate is required to use this setting.

If there is a firewall between GFI MailEssentials and Active Directory, open the LDAP port to allow communication.

Domain\User & Password Key in the credentials of a domain user which are used to connect to the directory service. Ensure that the password is not set to expire and does not change. If the password changes, this setting needs to be revised accordingly and you may experience some incorrect behavior by GFI MailEssentials since it will not be able to retrieve the list of users.
  1. Click Test to ensure connection and retrieval of users from Active Directory.
  2. Click OK.