Universidad de La Rioja Customer profile manages AD more efficiently Company Universidad Systems administrators deliver more value now that routine tasks can be de La Rioja Industry Education securely delegated to help desk staff with ActiveRoles Server from Dell Country Spain Employees 7600 students, 700 employees Website www. unirioja.es The Universidad de La Rioja was founded able to delegate those tasks to support in the academic year 1992-1993 and engineers, help desk operators and today is the only higher education and advanced users—but without giving scientific research center in the Rioja them broad administrative rights, and region of Spain. The institution has while being able to audit their individual Challenge 7,600 students, 450 professors and actions. The university also wanted to Systems administrators at Universidad researchers, and 250 staff members. offer self-service capabilities to users— de La Rioja were spending too much and, of course, it wanted all of this time on routine administration of Managing Active Directory is functionality through an easy-to-use Active Directory. Native tools could difficult with native tools. web interface. not secure, granular delegation IT staff at the Universidad de La Rioja of these tasks to help desk staff were trying to manage Active Directory “Native AD management was not as and resource owners. Moreover, (AD) using native tools, but found comprehensive as we wanted. We provisioning of accounts was time- those tools to be insufficient. Staff sought to administer identities, improve consuming and error-prone, and a found the tools to be too complex and administration monitoring, allow end- lack of detailed auditing introduced not sufficiently flexible or intuitive. In user self service, and enhance security security risks. particular, they were unable to provision in a centralized way, all with extended accounts efficiently, to create forms delegation and auditing capacities,” Solution with specific values to facilitate basic comments Jesús Mª Álvarez Ruiz, The university chose ActiveRoles administrative tasks, or to provide closed Systems Engineer, Universidad de la Server to address its challenges. forms for standard processes. Rioja. “We also needed a customizable ActiveRoles Server protects critical AD management web console— AD data by automating account In addition, the university was finding functionality that was missing in the provisioning; giving help desk that systems administrators were native environment.” personnel and data owners an spending too much time on routine intuitive, web-based console for administrative tasks. It wanted to be AD administration; and ensuring accountability with detailed auditing.

Benefits • Saved valuable IT time by enabling secure, granular delegation of routine administrative tasks ““Thanks to ActiveRoles Server, systems • Increased productivity of help desk administrators no longer have to perform operators by delivering an easy-to- use web interface routine administrative tasks without any • Reduced human errors through technical value.” automation • Enhanced security with role-based -Andy Spurway, Head of Information Services Delivery, Wiltshire Council access and detailed auditing ActiveRoles Server simplifies to their services. And because the Detailed auditing enhances security comprehensive AD management. solution’s web-based interface is easy and ensures accountability. The Universidad de la Rioja began to use, the delegated administrators do Moreover, with ActiveRoles Server, looking for a comprehensive AD not need extensive technical skills or the university can audit in detail 100 management tool. IT staff were already training, which enhances productivity. percent all the tasks performed on using several Dell tools, including And delegating administration of Active Directory, enhancing security Toad for Oracle, and had attended resources to the resource owners—who by ensuring accountability for all several Quest Software (now a part understand better than IT who needs administrators. Finally, the university of Dell) events and seminars. It access—makes systems function more credits the automation provided by therefore decided to evaluate Dell’s effectively. ActiveRoles Server with reducing human AD management solution, ActiveRoles errors, which has also helped enhance Server, as well as Microsoft Forefront An easy-to-use web interface system performance for users. Identity Manager (FIM). means no technical training is required. About Dell After carefully reviewing both products, “Before deployment of ActiveRoles Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) listens to the university selected the Dell Server, all assignment of members customers and delivers worldwide solution. ActiveRoles Server enables to groups and all assignment of innovative technology, business easy administration of user and group permissions in AD had to go through solutions and services they trust accounts, strictly enforced role- us, the Microcomputing and User and value. For more information, based security, day-to-day identity Service,” explains Álvarez. “Now, once visit www.dell.com. administration, and built-in auditing and the solution is deployed via a webpage, reporting. The Universidad de la Rioja the delegated administrators can keep was particularly impressed with the users updated and assign permissions Technology at work tool’s ease of use, power and speed of independently, without needing deployment. technical knowledge. We can also create Software groups based on user attributes, which • Dell™ ActiveRoles Server “ActiveRoles Server has enabled us to was not possible previously.” deliver important functionalities to network administration, without the user Granular delegation of being affected or the need for additional administrative rights frees technical knowledge. The quality of the up highly skilled IT staff. product and functionalities in terms of Delegating specific administrative rights deployment time and ease of use are to help desk operators and others clear differentiating factors over other has freed more highly skilled system solutions in the market,” notes Álvarez. administrators to work on more difficult projects important to the university. Give control over resource access “Thanks to ActiveRoles Server, systems to the resource owners, not IT. administrators no longer have to Using ActiveRoles Server, the university perform routine administrative tasks has been able to delegate appropriate without any technical value,” explains administrative authority to help Álvarez. “That enables them to focus on desk operators and heads of service tasks that deliver greater value to the throughout the organization, enabling organization.“ those staff members to act as delegated administrators of the resources assigned

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