Authentication " Macintosh "

Authentication
Authentication for Mac OS X is handled through the Kerberos authentication mechanism, which makes Mac OS X ideal in a networked environment. Additionally, Mac OS X includes
a feature known as the keychain. The keychain is a storage location for all the passwords you might use on the Internet (website passwords, FTP passwords, etc.) or anywhere. When a user
authenticates to the system, that procedure unlocks the keychain. From then on, any time the user revisits a location that has credentials stored in the keychain, the keychain will automatically
provide them on behalf of the user. In addition to Kerberos and the keychain, Mac OS X and newer versions include support for
Apple’s Open Directory. Open Directory is a directory much like Microsoft’s Active Directory and Novell’s eDirectory. It allows all users to authenticate to a central database of users so a user has to authenticate only once to the Directory. From then on, the security settings stored in the Directory for that user dictate what parts of the network can be accessed and under which conditions.