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389 Directory Server vs FreeIPA: catalog facts
389 Directory Server	FreeIPA
Free Free and open source.	Free Free and open source.
Linux, Self-hosted	Linux, Web, Self-hosted, Command line
Multi-supplier replication for scaling and fail-over Proven in very large deployments	Integrates LDAP, Kerberos, DNS and certificates in one system Trusts with Microsoft Active Directory
Linux only Requires LDAP knowledge to run well	Linux-centric; built around Fedora and related distributions Many integrated components make it heavy to deploy and operate
Downloadable app, Self-hosted	Self-hosted
Open source	Open source
License not stated	License not stated
No account needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Not stated if it works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 24, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 23, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.