A Domino® domain is a group of HCL Domino servers that share the same Domino Directory. As the control and administration center for Domino servers in a domain, the Domino Directory contains, among other documents, a Server document for each server and a Person document for each HCL Notes® user.

Domains can be used as a security measure. For example, you can grant or deny a user access to servers and databases, based on the domain in which the user is registered.

There are four basic scenarios for setting up Domino domains.

• The first scenario, which many small- and medium-size companies use, involves creating only one Domino domain and registering all servers and users in one Domino Directory. This scenario is the most common and the easiest to manage.
• The second scenario is common when a large company has multiple independent business units. In this case, one organization spread across multiple domains may be the best scenario. Then all servers and users are members of the same organization, and each business unit administers its own Domino Directory. For more information on administering multiple Domino directories, see Planning Directory Services in the related links.
• A third scenario is common when multiple companies work closely together yet want to retain individual corporate identities. Then one domain and multiple organizations may work best.
• The fourth scenario involves maintaining multiple domains and multiple organizations. This scenario often occurs when one company acquires another. Sometimes the decision to create multiple Domino domains is not based on organizational structure at all. For example, you may want to create multiple Domino domains if you have slow or unreliable network connections that prohibit frequent replication of a single, large directory. Keep in mind that working with multiple domains requires additional administrative work and requires you to set up a system for managing them.

Related concepts
Hierarchical naming for servers and users
Planning directory services
Planning directory services in a multiple-directory environment
Extended ACL

Related tasks
Roadmap for deploying Domino servers